


when the clock strikes twelve

by earlgrey_milktea



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Supernatural Elements, Halloween, Horror, M/M, Seijoh!hinata, Suspense, Urban Legends
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-17
Updated: 2020-10-31
Packaged: 2021-03-09 02:40:24
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 27,310
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27017449
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/earlgrey_milktea/pseuds/earlgrey_milktea
Summary: When he’s just a first-year at Aoba Johsai, Hinata Shouyou makes an unfortunate discovery about his team captain’s...not-so human tendencies.Five years later, Hinata has moved on and is just trying to live his new life in Brazil, when he runs into someone who looks strangely familiar…
Relationships: Hinata Shouyou & Kageyama Tobio, Hinata Shouyou/Oikawa Tooru, Iwaizumi Hajime & Oikawa Tooru
Comments: 69
Kudos: 329





	1. after dark

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wanted a spooky OiHina, so I wrote a spooky OiHina. This is part one of two!

When Hinata walked into the club room that morning, he already knew something was _up._

He had been running late because of an accident on his bike route, and instead of being one of the first to arrive and having to wait until one of the upperclassmen came by with the key, the door was already unlocked by the time he got there.

Which was strange...because when he slid the door open, the lights in the room were still off.

Hinata lingered in the door frame, waiting for his eyes to adjust to the darkness. Someone had draped a sheet over the window that overlooked the school courtyard, making it so that the only light in the room was from the doorway where Hinata stood and a strange, flickering light in the middle of the room.

“Hinata, hurry up and close the door!” 

Squinting, he realized that several of his teammates were huddled in a circle in the middle of the club room. Matsukawa was holding up a lighter in his hand, casting shadows on everyone’s faces around him, as the third-year gestured him forward with his other hand.

“Come on!”

Hinata immediately complied, shutting the door behind him and blanketing the rest of the room in darkness.

“U-um, what’s...going on?” He questioned nervously, inching forward into the room toward the huddle. “Is this like a weird team initiation thing? Because it’s already October, and it’s kind of late to be doing something like that, don’t you think?”

A hand shot out and grabbed him by the elbow, and Hinata yelped in fear, instantly trying to pull his arm away. 

“Oi. Dumbass. Sit down.”

Hinata froze at the sound of Kageyama’s voice. Not knowing what else to do, he huffed an incredulous sigh and allowed himself to be pulled down into a sitting position beside the other first year. Other than the sound of breathing and the rustling of movement as the other guys shifted around to make room for him to sit, it was eerily quiet.

Gulping at the unnerving silence, Hinata whispered furiously, “ _Now_ can someone explain what is going on?”

“The third-years are telling the story of the _Seijoh no Akuryō_ ,” Kunimi muttered softly from the other side of him.

“The _what_?” Hinata asked with a tilt of his head.

There were several gasps of disbelief coming from around him at his question, and Hinata swiveled his head around trying to make out the faces around him. Distantly, he noted that almost all of the team was present, minus their captain and vice captain. He wondered where they were and if they knew about the strangeness that was currently taking place in their locker room.

“Hinata, do you really not know what the _Seijoh no Akuryō_ is?” Kindaichi asked incredulously from the other side of him. Hinata could make out the turnip shape of his teammate’s features even with the shadowed surroundings. 

“Well, he's not really from this area, remember?” Kageyama responded in a pragmatic tone, from beside him, “He probably doesn’t know anything about it.”

Hinata frowned, still confused. “So what is it?”

At the front of the huddle, Matsukawa leaned forward, his face becoming half-illuminated by the light in his hand, causing him to look hallowed and gaunt. Hinata inwardly gulped at the sight. “This area of Miyagi is very famous for one thing and one thing only—and that is the _Seijoh no Akuryō_.” 

The dark-haired boy paused for a moment, looking down at the faces of his teammates one by one and savoring the tense silence before continuing, “You see, every All Hallow’s Eve...kids from this area go _missing_.”

“...What do you mean _missing_?” Hinata asked, eyes wide. He felt goosebumps start to rise on his arms, and he unwittingly shivered at the sensation. 

If there was one thing that Hinata hated most, it was _scary stories_. 

“Like...they just disappear,” Hanamaki responded from beside Matsukawa, grabbing the lighter from the other third-year’s hand, signaling that it was his turn to continue the story. “All Hallow’s Eve is the time when the spirit world grows the strongest. Some say that the _A_ _kuryō’_ is a malevolent spirit that lures in children and takes their souls captive...”

“Others say it’s a demon that feasts on the young,” Kyotani added in a harsh whisper from the other side of the room, snickering when Hinata and a few of the other first-years shrunk back in fear at his words.

“Either way,” Hanamaki said solemnly, “Their bodies are never found.”  
  


Everyone was quiet for a long moment, processing his words. Hinata could already feel his imagination start to get ahead of him, as he mentally began to picture a ghastly, shadowed figure.

“D-does anyone know what the _A_ _kuryō_ looks like?” Hinata asked slowly, half afraid of hearing the answer.

“That’s the worst part,” Matsukawa interjected again as he grabbed the lighter back from Hanamaki, smirking when the other boy flashed him a rude gesture with his hand. “...Supposedly, it blends in with the rest of us, and only on the night of All Hallow’s Eve, when the clock strikes twelve, it shows its true form. And...” 

The dark-haired boy’s voice lowered to almost a whisper, the flame in his hand flickering shadows onto his face. “There’s only one thing you can do to survive the encounter.” 

Hinata swallowed nervously. “W-what?”

“If you are the unlucky soul that happens to cross paths with the _A_ _kuryō_ , it will supposedly ask you a riddle. Answer the riddle correctly, and you live. Answer it incorrectly, and well…” Matsukawa shook his head in dismay, while Hanamaki made a sharp neck cutting motion from beside him.

“You _die!_?” Kindaichi’s voice was loud and disbelieving.

“Like...immediately?” Kunimi asked, voice wary.

“That’s what the legends say,” Yahaba said solemnly somewhere near the middle of the huddle.

“Huh? A riddle?” Hinata repeated curiously, squinting up at Kageyama who had frozen up beside him, and then back at the others. “Like what?”

Matsukawa and Hanamaki shared inscrutable glances between one another before the latter lowered his voice to barely above a whisper.

“The more there is of me, the less you see. What am I?”

_The more there is of me…_

_...the less you see?_

Hinata turned the phrase over in his head, trying to find some semblance of a clue in the words. But before he could even hope to consider a proper answer to the question, the lighter in Matsukawa’s hand was suddenly extinguished, submerging the room in an inky blackness that made Hinata freeze on instinct.

“ _Darkness_ ,” a low voice whispered so close to his ear that Hinata screamed and backed away immediately, only for unseen hands to grab at him and hoist him upwards. 

“Ahhh!” Hinata shrieked, bucking futilely against the incredibly strong arms that held him tight.

Without warning, the lights in the room suddenly flipped back on, revealing grinning faces and the sound of uproarious laughter around them.

Hinata finally paused mid-kick when he found himself blinking up into amused chestnut eyes. “O-Oikawa-senpai?!”

The team captain laughed breezily, and Hinata realized dazedly that the older boy was holding him up against his chest, feet dangling, with one arm wrapped around his middle and the other across his chest. The realization of how close Oikawa was pressed up against him made Hinata instantly turn warm, fighting down a blush that threatened to spread across his cheeks.

“That was too easy, Chibi-chan!”

And then Hinata registered his words and heard the distinct sound of snickering around him. 

The ginger gaped in disbelief as he looked from Oikawa’s laughing face to the amused expressions of his other teammates around the room. 

“W-wait a second! Was this all a prank!?”

From over Oikawa’s shoulder, Watari looked down at Hinata apologetically. “The older guys try to scare the first-years with that urban legend every year when it starts getting closer to Halloween.”

Hinata felt himself pouting automatically in response, both relieved that the story wasn’t real and annoyed at having fallen for it so easily.

When Iwaizumi appeared beside him, Hinata tilted his head to look up at the dark-haired boy’s unimpressed face as he nudged Oikawa. 

“Oi. Drop Hinata.”

Oikawa made a loud _humph_ sound at the terse command, lowering Hinata to the ground and giving his hair a small ruffle as the smaller boy tried to maintain the put-out expression on his face, despite internally preening at the action.

“Aww, don’t be too mad at us, Chibi-chan,” Oikawa said good-naturedly, winking at Hinata as he moved away to join the others in getting ready for practice.

Turning to Hanamaki next, Hinata found the other boy snickering at the betrayed expression on his face, his bottom lip still jutting out and eyes narrowed.

”You guys suck.”

Matsukawa smirked at the statement, tossing Hinata the lighter that he still held in his hands. He caught it awkwardly mid-air, still pouting as he felt the cold metal against his fingers.

“That was super mean, you know,” Hinata muttered sullenly, playing with the lighter in his hands, as he trudged forward to his own locker.

“Sorry, Hinata,” Hanamaki said lightly, patting the smaller boy on the shoulder. “You were an easy target for the shock factor.”

“Yeah, the other first years wouldn’t have been as funny,” Matsukawa added with a chuckle, gesturing over his shoulder with his thumb. Hinata followed his gaze and shot a speculative glance at the other first-years. Kindaichi was grumpily putting on his practice shirt while Kunimi had his face half-tucked into his jacket, hiding whatever sullen expression he was probably wearing.

On the other side of the club room, Hinata locked eyes with Kageyama, who frowned at him in turn.

_Yeah, the other Seijoh first-years weren’t the most expressive bunch_ , Hinata mused to himself.  
  


While it had definitely been a rocky start at the beginning of the year—with Kunimi and Kindaichi flat-out ignoring and antagonizing Kageyama, and the latter death-glaring anyone who attempted to approach him—Hinata had thought they were a hopeless case, for sure. But somehow overtime, and with the help of their team's constant meddling and prodding, they all managed to form a truce of sorts. Perhaps something even closely resembling a friendship.

Although none of them would ever dare admit it out loud.

As everyone filtered out of the room to head to the gymnasium, Kageyama lingered back, waiting for Hinata to change and put his bag away in his locker.

”Are you going to make fun of me, too?” Hinata muttered, casting a suspicious glance at him from over his shoulder. Kageyama had that pinched look on his face, meaning that something was on his mind.

”...What is it?” Hinata asked, raising a brow at him.

“It’s...not all fake,” Kageyama said slowly, frowning to himself as Hinata pulled his practice shirt over his head. “Some of the story is actually true.”

“What? The _Seijoh no Akuryō?_ ” Hinata scoffed, tugging the shirt down and sticking his tongue out at the other boy. “I’m not falling for this again, Bakayama!"

“I'm serious,” Kageyama responded tersely, surveying the room quickly to see if anyone was still in the room before looking back at the other boy. 

“...Every year on Halloween, kids around here really do disappear.”

Hinata frowned at that, hazel eyes drawn back to the lighter that he had placed in his locker, thinking back to the story he heard that morning. “But they said it was just a prank…”

Kageyama shook his head, and when he looked up to meet Hinata’s inquisitive gaze, his blue eyes were dark and serious. “People treat it as a joke now, but…”

Hinata felt himself grow uneasy when the other boy trailed off. “...But what?”

"Some of it _is_ real, okay?” 

Hinata wanted to ask more questions, but he stopped himself short when he saw the conflicted expression on Kageyama's face, waiting to see if he would say more.

But the raven-haired boy only sighed, shaking his head, before brushing past him to get to the door.

"...Just make sure you get home before dark.”

-

Hinata pondered Kageyama’s words throughout practice, wondering if there was more that the other boy had meant to say. _Were kids really going missing? What part of the story was actually true?_

He wanted to march up to the other boy and demand answers, but once Hinata was on the court, it was almost too easy to get distracted.

See, it was kind of hard to think about silly urban legends when Oikawa, with his perfectly side-swept brown hair and annoyingly handsome face, was _right there next to him,_ flexing his arms in front of him as he demonstrated how to properly receive the ball. Hinata nodded his head absentmindedly, pretending that he was listening with rapt attention and not just unabashedly staring at his captain’s biceps and remembering the feeling of them wrapped around his torso not moments ago.

“—Did you get that, Shou-chan?” Oikawa asked, tilting his head to the side questioningly at Hinata, one hand on his hip.

“Um, no, yes. Definitely,” came the words that tumbled out of Hinata’s mouth before he could stop them, and Oikawa’s lips quirked upwards in amusement when a flush involuntarily rose to his cheeks.

For the most part, Hinata _thought_ he had been doing a pretty good job at keeping his stupid, embarrassing crush under wraps. 

His nervous stuttering when trying to have a normal conversation with the older boy was... _mostly_ under control, and as long as he maintained a healthy, respectable distance from his captain, Hinata didn’t have to worry about the way his body seemed to instantly react—as if every nerve in his body was hyper aware and vibrating on edge when the handsome brunette was in the nearest vicinity.

Unfortunately, whether he was aware of it or not, Oikawa seemed intent on not making it easy for him.

Whether it was leaning in close and wrapping an arm around Hinata’s shoulders to give him some advice or a hand coming down to ruffle his hair, long fingers lingering for just moments too long to be considered normal—the older boy seemed determined to break every rule as to what was considered appropriate and platonic personal space. 

It was driving Hinata _insane_.

“Why do I get the feeling that you weren’t even listening?” Oikawa asked, and Hinata could hear the smirk in his voice without even having to look up to see it. “...Thinking about something _else_?”

Fighting another embarrassing blush from dusting his cheeks, Hinata determinedly shook his head and looked everywhere but his unnervingly handsome team captain.

“S-sorry, senpai! I was just thinking about the ghost story from this morning,” he half-lied through his teeth. "You know, the _Seijoh no Akuryō?"_

At that, Oikawa's stance seemed to change. There was a telling gleam in his eyes that hadn't been there before. It was a look that Hinata wasn't quite used to seeing, at least not outside the scope of volleyball match. 

"What about it?" Oikawa asked, voice deceptively casual.

Hinata thought back to his conversation with Kageyama and the concern laced his blue eyes. _"Some of it is real, okay?”_

"Do you...believe in it?" The ginger-haired boy questioned, watching the brunette curiously as Oikawa stepped closer to him.

Hinata blinked up at him in surprise when he realized how close the other boy had gotten to him, neck straining up to meet his gaze.

“I was never one to believe in silly ghost stories,” Oikawa asserted, leaning forward to lightly tug at a wayward strange of orange hair at the top of his head, brown eyes never leaving his. “They’re usually wrong after all.”

Hinata involuntarily gulped, taking a step back with a nervous laugh already bubbling in his throat. "A-ah. Of course."

Oikawa watched him for just a second longer, before straightening back up, his expression changing back to normal. Hinata almost let out a sigh of relief at the noticeable difference. 

"Could we practice spiking today, Oikawa-senpai?"

At that, Oikawa shook his head with a small laugh, lightening the tension that Hinata hadn't quite noticed had been there before. “You only ever care about spiking, Shou-chan! How are you ever going to get better at anything else if that’s all you think about?”

Hinata would argue that, _no_ , that was definitely _not_ all he thought about, but rather than embarrass himself further, he just shrugged his shoulders and scratched the side of his face awkwardly.

“Okay, okay, come on,” Oikawa tugged at Hinata’s shirt sleeve towards the cart of practice balls.

On a normal day of practice, Oikawa usually preferred that Hinata practice with Kageyama to work on their freak quick attack. But lately, it was like Oikawa could sense Hinata’s growing annoyance at himself for not being able to improve past that singular move.

The need to get _stronger,_ to get _better_ was a constant mantra that Hinata couldn’t get past, and after spiking the ball into the net for the umpteenth time the orange-haired boy groaned in frustration and kicked his foot against the gym floor. “Sorry, Oikawa-senpai. I don’t know why I can’t get it right. For some reason, I can only hit the ball when Kageyama tosses to me…”

“It’s like...I’m useless without him,” Hinata frowned at himself, before looking back at the setter who was watching him with a speculative expression on his face, spinning a ball lightly in his hands.

“You’re not useless, Shou-chan,” Oikawa finally said, walking towards him and ruffling the smaller boy’s hair. “I’m no Tobio-chan, so unfortunately I won’t be able to do the crazy quick attack that you weirdos can pull off…”

Hinata chuckled at the captain’s annoyed tone and tried not to blush when Oikawa smiled down at him in satisfaction. “But you’re never going to get better if you only rely on that guy to get you the ball every time.”

“What do you mean?” Hinata asked with a tilt of his head.

“If you want to get _really_ good,” Oikawa said, leaning down so close to Hinata so that the smaller boy had to take a step back so that their foreheads wouldn’t bump. “...Then you have to learn how to hit tosses from any setter, you know?”

“You have to learn how to be more _in-de-pen-dent_ ,” Oikawa sounded out each syllable of the word with a soft poke of his index finger to Hinata’s forehead.

The smaller boy pouted, rubbing the reddening spot with his hand. 

“But how do I do that?”

Oikawa took a step back, eyes narrowed as he looked down at Hinata thoughtfully. “You know what, how about you stay after school with me sometime? We can practice more together.”

Hinata blinked up in surprise at the unexpected offer.

“R-really? You mean it?”

And see, this was another _problem_. 

How irritatingly _nice_ his senpai was to him.

His words had Hinata’s heart racing with admiration and fondness, and he had to struggle to tamper the emotions down so he wouldn’t smile up stupidly at his captain and blurt out something ridiculous and embarrassing.

Because some part of Hinata _knew_ that Oikawa would never offer to practice with any of the other first-years. While, yes, he had always acted like the respectable senpai he was to all of the underclassmen—well, minus Kageyama—Hinata always felt like the way their captain treated him was... _different_.

_Special._

And that was dangerous.

Because it made Hinata feel something arguably senseless and idiotic—like _hope._

“I...would love that, Oikawa-senpai!” Hinata found himself saying, grinning with a childish excitement that lit up his whole face. “Thank you so much!”

And when Oikawa laughed, brown eyes seeming to twinkle in amusement as he casually threw an arm over Hinata’s shoulders, pulling him close, the orange-haired boy found himself forgetting all about the scare from that morning—talks of evil spirits and missing children were the last thing on his mind. 

...Besides, Halloween was still weeks away.

-

As the month of October drew to a close, the air grew colder, and the days became short, marking the beginning of the winter months, and soon enough everyone began donning their winter coats and scarves.

Hinata was bundled up in his thickest jacket, a green, wool scarf wrapped tightly around his neck protecting him from the brunt of the cold. He had to dig through their attic earlier that morning to find his only pair of winter gloves he owned, and Hinata was grateful for the extra warmth on his hands as he gripped the handles of his bike tightly.

Though Hinata had never been a fan of the cold weather—much preferring the sun and warmth that accompanied the summer months—he couldn’t help but appreciate how the time of year seemed to transform everything around him.

Biking down the country road that led to his school, Hinata admired the golden brown and orange leaves that now covered the once vibrant green trees that lined his path and breathed in the crisp air. 

At the back of his mind, Hinata found himself wondering if Oikawa loved the fall, too. And a small part of him couldn't help but picture how the other boy would look dressed in winter layers. Probably ridiculously handsome.

Sighing to himself at the thought, he was just about to turn the corner onto the main street that led to the high school, when something bright and red caught his eye. Hinata slowed down his pedaling to a stop, eyes wide with curiosity as he took a closer look.

There was a sign posted on the fence that hadn’t been there before.

> _Curfew_
> 
> _7PM-6AM_
> 
> _Strictly Enforced_
> 
> _Minors under 18 Not Allowed Outside_
> 
> _Without Being Accompanied by an Adult_

Hinata squinted his eyes in confusion as he read the words. A curfew? That was definitely new. He wracked his brain trying to remember if someone had mentioned anything about a curfew and came up blank. What could possibly be the reason for it?

He was still thinking about the sign when he pulled up to the school courtyard and walked his bike up to the metal racks at the front, pulling the gloves off his hands and trying to ignore the cold as he bent down to lock his bike up.

“Hey, Shouyou!”

Hinata looked up in surprise and immediately grinned when he saw a few of his classmates approach—a girl with curly, dark hair and a bespectacled boy with freckles and a wide smile.

“Ayami-chan! Hiro-kun! Good morning!”

“Morning!”

“It’s so nice out today, isn’t it?”

The three chatted amicably as they walked through the courtyard towards the school entrance. Hinata was just pulling his gloves back on, when he remembered the sign he passed by that morning.

“Oh, hey, did you guys happen to see those curfew signs posted by the school?” Hinata asked suddenly, pausing in his steps.

Hiro and Ayami looked at each other and back at Hinata, their expressions curious and bewildered. “Well, of course. They do that every year around this time…”

At their words, Hinata felt an instant chill creep up his bones, a sense of unease making its way to the surface. He tried to shake it off. 

“...Why?”

Hiro frowned at him, glancing back at Ayami who shrugged helplessly in response. “Because it’s Halloween today," he said, as if it was the most obvious statement he could make.

But Hinata knitted his brows in confusion, clearly not understanding. “But what about trick-or-treating and everything? Don’t you guys celebrate?”

“Shouyou,” Ayami finally said, voice firm and questioning. “You have to know about all of the kids that disappear every year, right?”

“But I…” Hinata felt his mouth start to dry and wet his lips automatically as he thought back to the story he had heard in the club room all those weeks ago. “The _Seijoh no Akuryō._..”

“...I thought it wasn’t real?” 

Ayami frowned at Hinata’s nervous expression, shaking her head. “The _Akuryō_ itself is considered a local urban legend, but the disappearances are _real_. Very real.”

Hinata felt his eyes widen in shock. _So Kageyama wasn’t lying._

“Last year, there were five kids that disappeared,” Hiro added solemnly, and Hinata almost choked on his own words.

“F-five?!”

“The year before that it was three,” Ayami said, pursing her lips thoughtfully. “It’s different every year.”

Hiro laughed, but it sounded hollow and forced to Hinata’s ears. “Personally, I always thought it was just a prank that kids would pull on their families. Just a few runaways that chose the most opportune time to leave.”

Hinata bit at his bottom lip nervously, looking from one classmate to the other. “So you don't think it's real?”

“I’ve been told the story of the _Akuryō_ so often by my parents that it’s basically ingrained in me,” Ayami explained, shaking her head with a frown. "Legends like that? They have to stem from somewhere, right? And what else could explain those disappearances?"

"No way," Hiro waved his hand at her dismissively, “There is no way it’s real. I mean, who would ever believe that some _Akuryō_ was out here stalking children? It's just a silly story. It's crazy what the people around here will believe.”

Hinata was silent for a long moment, contemplating their words with a tilt of his head. "Does everyone else believe that ghost story then?"

"Not a ghost, a _demon_ ," Hiro corrected, holding his finger up, "I looked this up. An _a_ _kuryō_ is a demon or evil spirit that brings upon misfortune for all that encounter it. And, unfortunately, everyone around here has grown up believing it."

“You know,” Ayami lowered her voice, taking a cursory glance around them before leaning forward to whisper. “I actually heard that some of our classmates were planning to sneak into the school tonight after curfew and try to lure the _Akuryō_ out.”

“ _What?!_ ” Hinata exclaimed in shock. That sounded like the most ill-advised, reckless idea he had ever heard. Luring out an _evil spirit?! A demon?_ “Who in their right minds would ever do that?”

Hiro became strangely quiet at that, averting his eyes and humming under his breath when Hinata turned to look at him questioningly. Ayami narrowed her eyes at his reaction, stopping to grab the other boy by the arm. 

“Hiro-kun...don’t tell us you are part of that idiotic plan…”

The other boy opened his mouth as if to argue, but seeing their suspicious expressions, he merely raised his hands up defensively, throwing them both a sheepish look. “Okay, fine! Yes! I _might_ be going tonight...”

“But, it’s just for fun!” The other boy insisted, adjusting his glasses on they bridge of his nose, “A few of the first years are planning to join. Why don’t you guys come?”

“No. Absolutely not,” Hinata gritted out, waving his hands about wildly. “No thank you, evil spirits. Not today.” 

Ayami nodded her head along with him. “Yeah, I’d rather not test the spirits and demons on All Hallow’s Eve. Fake or no.”

“Plus,” she raised a brow at Hiro, “Sneaking into the school after hours seems pretty irresponsible. How exactly do you guys plan on getting away with that?”

“Someone got the keys to the school auditorium from one of the third-year students,” Hiro explained, voice becoming conspiratorial as he cupped a hand over his mouth. “We’re planning on hiding out there after school until midnight.”

“That sounds extremely foolish,” Ayami said dryly, crossing her arms. 

Hiro only shrugged, adjusting his backpack over his shoulder and proceeding to walk to the school entrance. “Suit yourselves. Although,” he turned to Hinata suddenly, one eyebrow raised, “I’m pretty sure one of the guys on your volleyball team was planning to join, too…”

Hinata stopped in his tracks, staring blankly at the other boy as Hiro continued walking ahead with Ayami.

_Who on the team would be stupid enough to provoke a demon?!_

-

“Oikawa-senpai! Did you see that spike just then?” 

Barely landing on his feet, Hinata was already spinning on his heel to look back at his team captain with shining eyes. 

Oikawa’s hands were still slightly raised in the air from where he had set the ball to him, but at Hinata’s excited words, he let them fall and rest at his sides as he offered the smaller boy an easy smile. “Great job, Chibi-chan! You’re definitely improving!”

“You think so?” Hinata asked earnestly, beaming up at the taller boy when he walked over and ruffled his hair affectionately. 

“Definitely. You’ve been hitting all of my tosses perfectly,” Oikawa affirmed with a cheerful nod of his head, looping his arm around Hinata’s shoulders as he led him off of the court so the rest of the team could continue practice.

The orange-haired boy felt his cheeks flush automatically from the close proximity, but he couldn’t fixate on it for long when he was still running off of the high from spiking.

“All of our extra practices have paid off then!” Hinata exclaimed happily, not noticing the curious looks thrown their way at his words.

From the other side of the court, Matsukawa nudged Hanamaki with his elbow, leaning over to whisper, “I told you Oikawa was playing favorites.”

Hanamaki raised a brow at Hinata, who was still grinning up at their captain on the other side of the court. “That’s not going to end well.”

“I almost feel bad for the kid,” Matsukawa muttered, shaking his head as the other third-year tossed him a ball. 

“Someone should warn him.”

From beside them, Kageyama pretended not to hear, jaw clenching when he heard Oikawa call off-handedly over his shoulder. “Oi, Tobio-chan! Take over for me!” 

At the sound of the other first-year’s name, Hinata turned his head slightly to meet the raven-haired boy’s inscrutable gaze for a brief moment, blinking curiously at the dark frown etched on Kageyama’s face before facing forward again. _Huh_.

Ever since Oikawa had started inviting him to extra practices after school, Kageyama had definitely started acting _weird_. 

Hinata tilted his head, crinkling his nose in thought. Well, to be fair, Kageyama had _always_ acted weird around Oikawa.

It was like Oikawa’s mere presence caused Kageyama’s hackles to visibly rise, expression immediately darkening and shoulders hunching when the older boy approached him. 

And it definitely didn’t help that the other setter seemed to revel in Kageyama’s reactions, further poking and prodding with verbal jabs poorly disguised as cheerful praise.

Maybe the other boy was jealous about the extra practices? Hinata mulled the thought over in his head. Though he couldn’t imagine why he would be. It wasn’t like Kageyama was dying to spend any more extra time with either Hinata or Oikawa to begin with.

When they reached the benches, Hinata immediately grinned up at Iwaizumi, who was standing by the water station with his arms crossed over his chest. “Iwa-san! Did you see my spike? Oikawa-senpai says I’ve been getting better because of all the extra practices we’ve been doing!”

The dark-haired boy’s face softened briefly at Hinata’s excitement, if only for a moment, before his stern gaze slid over to Oikawa, eyebrow raised appraisingly. 

“Extra practices, huh?”

“That’s right,” Oikawa responded coolly, his expression becoming almost irritated as he dropped his arm from around Hinata’s shoulders. “What of it?”

Iwaizumi narrowed his eyes at Oikawa’s clear nonchalance, voice turning cold. “Just curious is all. This is the first I’m hearing about this.”

"Am I not allowed to do things without your permission, Iwa-chan?" 

Hinata furrowed his brows in confusion at the noticeable tension growing between the two third-years. While it was normal for them to bicker from time to time, this sort of animosity was unusual and off-putting. Something was _different_. The orange-haired boy swiveled his head to look from one boy to the other. “Umm...did I do something wrong?”

They both looked down at him sharply, causing Hinata to shift nervously in place, before Oikawa was once again quirking a small smile in his direction. “No, of course not, Shou-chan,” the brunette assured, “Iwa-chan is just jealous that we didn’t invite him.”

Hinata’s eyes widened in realization, and he looked back at Iwaizumi with a guilty expression on his face. “Iwa-san, you can join us next time!” And after a moment’s consideration, he turned back to Oikawa. “I was actually going to ask you if we could start including Bakayama, too!”

Oikawa noticeably grimaced at the sound of the other first-year's. “Tobio-chan? Why should we do that?”

“I just don’t want him to feel left out,” Hinata explained with a tilt of his head. “He looks grumpier than usual.”

At his simple explanation, Oikawa’s expression turned speculative, before shrugging his shoulders lightly. “If that’s what you want, Shou-chan. But just remember, we don’t have any extra practice tonight.”

Hinata scrunched up his face in confusion, pout evident on his lips. “But why not?”

“Because it’s Halloween tonight, silly,” Oikawa responded, reaching out a finger to tap on the smaller boy’s forehead. 

Iwaizumi stayed silent, eyeing carefully how the taller boy’s touch seemed to linger just a tad too long before his hand finally fell. Hinata didn’t seem to notice, merely blinking up at the captain as he considered his words.

“Oh.” Hinata cocked his head to the side, scratching the side of his chin in thought. “Are you going trick-or-treating or something, Oikawa-senpai?”

"No," the brunette smirked, chestnut eyes gleaming. “...I have a _date_.” 

“O-oh!” Hinata blinked rapidly, a blush growing on his face as he coughed awkwardly into his hand. “But what about the curfew?”

Oikawa slowly smirked. “You worried about us, Chibi-chan?”

Hinata rubbed the back of his head, regarding the two of them curiously. “I mean...with the disappearances and everything. Aren’t you guys worried, too?”

"I'm not worried about any ghosts," Iwa said gruffly in response, his gaze wary as he looked at the other boy beside him.

“Demon,” Hinata found himself automatically correcting, remembering Hiro's words from earlier that morning. He blinked up at the two third-years when they seemed to freeze in place.

“...What?” Oikawa pressed, voice suddenly becoming as hard as steel.

“W-well, I…” Hinata furrowed his brows as he looked from one boy to the other, hazel eyes landed on the tense lines on Iwa’s face. “The _Akuryō_...isn’t that technically...a demon? Not a ghost?”

He licked his lips nervously when the two continued to stare him down for a moment longer, before Oikawa’s expression suddenly lightened again, like a switch had been flipped on. 

“Oh, is that right?” The brunette asked cheerily, looking over at his vice captain.

Iwa sighed deeply, closing his eyes with a shake of his head. “That’s right. Technically it is.”

The orange-haired boy opened his mouth to say something, but then he heard his name being shouted from the other side of the gym.

“Hinata! Let’s go!” Kindaichi called out, Kunimi close behind him, eyeing them curiously.

Hinata looked over his shoulder at them and waved his hand in acknowledgement, before whirling back around to face Oikawa and Iwaizumi. “See ya guys on Monday!” And after a short pause, he tilted his head up at his captain, eyes bright and earnest.

“Have fun on your date, Oikawa-senpai!”

Hinata then flashed them a quick grin, before jogging to join the other first years who were getting ready to pack up the equipment for the day.

Watching the smaller boy’s retreating back, Oikawa’s expression quickly lost its lightness as he turned to meet Iwaizumi’s leveling glare. 

“What?”

“I just wish you would leave Hinata alone,” Iwaizumi said, voice low and imploring, “He’s a good kid.”

“But he’s just so _interesting_ ,” Oikawa responded with a pout curling on his lips, but his eyes were flashing with something that made Iwaizumi instinctively frown. “Everyone else is so _boring,_ Iwa-chan.”

For a brief moment, Iwaizumi wondered if he could still warn Hinata—go to the younger boy and take him by the shoulders and tell him to turn around now and run and not ever look back. Leave the team. Switch schools. Get as far away from here as possible.

He wondered if there was still a chance to save him. Or if it was already too late. 

...Because it never did turn out well for the ones Oikawa found interesting.

-

Hinata rolled the cart of practice balls into the storage closet, followed closely behind by Kageyama who was attempting to fold up the volleyball net tangled up in his arms. Beside them, Kunimi and Kindaichi were pulling out the cleaning supplies from one of the cabinets.

It was customary for the first years on the team to take on the responsibility of putting the equipment away and cleaning up the gym after practice. And truthfully, Hinata didn’t mind it much. He liked spending the extra time in the gym. 

Sometimes, if Kageyama was in a more generous mood, he’d even let Hinata convince him to toss a few balls for him before they put the net up.

And speaking of Kageyama…

The orange-haired boy snuck a glance over at his frowning teammate, who had finally managed to untangle the net and was in the process of folding up. Hinata bit his lip in thought. 

_Maybe he should try talking to him…_

“Hey, be careful with that!” 

Hinata glanced up to see Kunimi glaring at Kindaichi who was brandishing a broken broom in his hands. The handle had splintered off, making it look like some sort of make-shift spike. “You could hurt someone with that. Throw it away!”

“Okay, okay, jeez! I wasn’t going to stab someone with it,” Kindaichi responded with a roll of his eyes as he placed the broken broom pieces in the back of the room. “I’ll take it to the garbage once we’re done cleaning.”

Kunimi still looked annoyed, but then his gaze slid over to Hinata. “You guys good with putting up the rest of the equipment? We’ll handle sweeping and mopping the gym.”

Hinata nodded his head in confirmation, smiling at the two. “Okay! I’ll make sure Bakayama here doesn’t break anything.”

His simple teasing caused the raven-haired boy to shoot him a sharp look, but Kunimi only shook his head disinterestedly, leading Kindaichi out of the storage room with the rest of the cleaning supplies in hand.

When they were finally alone, Hinata immediately turned to Kageyama, placing his hands on his hips. “Are you going to explain what’s gotten you in such a grumpy mood lately?”

There was a brief pause as Kageyama put the folded net back on a shelf before he whirled around abruptly to pin Hinata down with his narrowed eyes.

“Are _you_ going to explain what’s up with you and Oikawa?” 

Hinata automatically froze up at the accusatory tone, despite his mind telling him that there was no way Kageyama could possibly know about his stupid crush on their captain. 

“N-nothing? Nothing is going on between us!”

“Oh, _really_?” Kageyama responded, not looking remotely convinced by the answer. “Then why are you guys spending so much time together?”

Hinata felt himself glaring back at him, growing indignant in response. “He’s just helping me out with some extra practices, that’s all! I can’t rely on your tosses forever, Bakayama!”

“I’m not saying you should!” Kageyama shot back angrily, dark brows drawing together as he huffed to himself, looking away from Hinata. “But Oikawa…”

The other boy looked conflicted, as if trying to find the right words to say. Hinata cocked his head at him curiously.

“He’s just not the type of person to want to help someone out without getting something in return,” Kageyama said finally, frowning when Hinata raised an unimpressed brow in turn.

“Is it so hard to believe that our team captain is just being _nice_?” Hinata challenged.

Kageyama scowled in response. “Oikawa is _never_ nice.”

“I think that’s just to you,” Hinata muttered under his breath, causing the other boy to roll his eyes in annoyance.

“Look,” Kageyama began, sighing to himself and not taking the bait for once. “Just make sure you two aren’t staying after for extra practice tonight. It’s Halloween night, you know.”

“Ah. You’re talking about that curfew, huh?” Hinata asked, waving a hand at him. “Well, Worry-Yama, you’ll be happy to know that Oikawa and I are not practicing tonight.”

“Good.”

“...Plus he has a date, so,” Hinata added, not sure why he was even bringing up that unnecessary tidbit of information to the other boy.

“Uh-huh,” Kageyama gave him an assessing look. “So, you’re going straight home after school?”

“Yep!” Hinata responded brightly, happy for the change in conversation. "What about you? Any Halloween plans?"

"Not...really."

“You know what?" Hinata said, leaning forward and lowering his voice slightly, "Some of my classmates were talking about how they were going to stay after school to lure out _Seijoh no Akuryō_. Isn’t that crazy? They even said that someone from our team was planning to join!”

“But who would be stupid enough to…” Hinata trailed off when he recognized the tell-tale pinched look on Kageyama’s face, and the way the other boy seemed to freeze in place at his words. Hinata blinked at him. “Wait a minute...”

“You?!” The orange-haired boy suddenly shouted, jabbing his finger into Kageyama’s shoulder. He automatically smacked Hinata’s hand away, scowling, but neither confirmed or denied the accusation. “Aren’t you the one who made a big deal about warning me not to stay out after dark? And about the missing kids?”

Hinata took a deep breath, chest heaving as he raised his hands up in the air. “Are you _insane_?”

Kageyama glowered at him. “Are you done?”

“You don’t even _like_ socializing with people,” Hinata continued, clearly _not_ done as his voice became more and more hysterical. “You like... _go out of your way_ to avoid social interactions. But _now_ you want to break curfew to join some crazy ghost hunting squad. What the heck, Baka—?!”

Kageyama reached and slammed his hand over Hinata’s mouth mid-sentence, effectively shutting the smaller boy up. “If you could shut up for five seconds, I could actually try to explain this to you.”

Hinata furrowed his brows at him, mouth still covered. Kageyama glared at him. “Are you going to actually listen?”

Hinata nodded his head eagerly, and the raven-haired boy sighed defeatedly, dropping his hand. 

“So?” Hinata pressed when his mouth was uncovered, looking at him with wide eyes.

There was a long pause before Kageyama finally answered. “When my older sister, Miwa, was just a first-year here...she…” 

Hinata felt his eyes widen in realization when the other boy trailed off, looking uncomfortable. “Don’t tell me she was one of the ones that disappeared?”

Kageyama shook his head, and Hinata felt himself let out a loud sigh of relief, dropping his face in his hands. “Oh my god, don’t scare me like that...”

“She got the riddle right.”

Hinata froze at his words. “W-what?”

Kageyama looked conflicted, eyebrows furrowing before he finally looked up to meet Hinata’s wide-eyed gaze. “When Miwa came home that Halloween night, she wasn’t acting like herself. She was so... _scared_. And she kept repeating the same thing over and over again...” 

The dark-haired boy took a slow, shallow breath. “She kept saying, _‘I did it. I’m alive. I got the riddle right. I did it.’_ ” 

“No way, there’s no way,” Hinata shook his head in disbelief. “But the _A_ _kuryō_...it’s not real. It can’t be. It’s just a stupid urban legend.”

“I don’t believe in it either,” Kageyama said, frowning down at the shorter boy, “That’s why I want to go tonight. For peace of mind, mostly. I just want to prove to Miwa that it isn’t real. That it was probably just a stupid prank that someone was trying to pull on her.” 

“So you want to give _her_ peace of mind,” Hinata asked, tilting his head to the side thoughtfully when Kageyama nodded his head in affirmation. 

“I guess so.”

“That’s...shockingly very nice of you, Bakayama,” Hinata said, smiling instantly when the other boy made a face at him. The ginger hummed to himself, a pensive look on his face as he walked a few paces away in the small storage room before doubling back and staring at Kageyama determinedly. 

“Okay. You've convinced me. I'm going to join you.”

Kageyama looked down at him in confusion. “Join me…?”

“On your demon hunt,” Hinata said simply, nodding to himself. “You’re going to need my help.”

“W-what?!” The raven-haired boy choked, clearly not expecting that answer. “The last thing I need is _your_ help.”

Hinata threw Kageyama a smug look, raising his brows at him in a teasing manner. “Oh, so you think you can solve the _A_ _kuryō’s_ riddle on your own, then?”

“And you think a dumbass like you would be better?”

“Better than you, Bakayama!”

“Somehow, I doubt that,” Kageyama responded, snorting, “I’ve seen your grade in literature.”

“I’m coming with you!” Hinata said, tone final, as he crossed his arms. 

“But—” 

“Hey, you two!” Kunimi called out from the doorway of the storage room, expression displeased as he looked between the two of them. “Are you guys done in here or what?”

Hinata threw him a sheepish look, rubbing the back of his head. “Sorry, Kunimi-san! We’re almost done!”

Kunimi continued to look unimpressed, surveying the both of them with narrowed eyes, but eventually he nodded his head and turned away. Hinata and Kageyama shared an unspoken look, before hurrying to put the rest of the equipment away.

Hinata was just closing up the last cupboard when a thought occurred to him.

“Hey, Kageyama.” 

The other boy turned to look at him. “What?”

“If your sister said she actually met the _A_ _kuryō_...did she ever say what it looked like? Like was it a scary demon with horns?" Hinata put his fingers up over his head and contorted his face to look as scary as possible. "Or was it actually like a creepy spirit or something?"

Kageyama ignored his teammate's antics and pursed his lips at the question. “Actually...she said that it looked like a normal kid—like a boy around our age. But that it was his eyes that gave him away...”

Hinata listened with rapt attention as Kageyama’s expression became thoughtful.

“She said that they glowed _amber_.”

-

After school ended, Hinata walked out of his classroom, surprised to find Kageyama already there waiting for him, leaning against the side of the door.

“Hey,” the taller boy said shortly, adjusting his book bag on his shoulder.

Hinata beamed as he looked up at him, his smile turning mischievous. “I _knew_ you wanted me to join, Bakayama.”

Kageyama glowered, but didn’t argue as they made their way off of campus to a nearby convenience store to stock up on what Hinata claimed were ‘extremely-necessary-camp-out-supplies’.

By the time they left the store, bell ringing cheerily behind them, their backpacks were filled with snacks and other goodies to tide them over until midnight. Hinata decided to splurge and purchased them both flashlights as well, and the ginger was currently in the process of slipping in the batteries into his own as they walked back to campus.

It was already 6PM, and the streets were beginning to empty with only a smattering of people here and there all hurrying to make it back home before the curfew started. With the sun beginning to set, the sky turned into a dusky mix of orange and magenta. Hinata kept his head tilted upwards, admiring the view, as he tucked his hands into his pockets to try and maintain some semblance of warmth when a particularly crisp breeze blew by.

“I told my mom that I was sleeping over at your place, by the way,” Hinata said, flipping the flashlight on and off experimentally in his hands, pointing and aiming it as though it were some sort of weapon.

Kageyama glanced down at him warily, his own flashlight ready and stuffed inside the side pocket of his coat. “Fine. I live a lot closer anyway.”

Hinata twirled the flashlight absentmindedly in his hand before slipping it comfortably in the side of his backpack, looking back up at the taller boy. “Do the police actually enforce the curfew? Like...will anyone be patrolling out after midnight when we walk back to your place?”

Kageyama yawned softly, pulling his own hands out of his pockets to rub at his eyes. “They might be. We can always cut through the park, though.”

“Okay, Tiredyama. Good luck with staying up until midnight,” Hinata said lightly, pulling out his phone to check his messages. “Oh, and Hiro-kun says that everyone else is dressing up in costumes for tonight, too!”

The dark-haired boy frowned at that. “...I don’t have a costume. Do you?’

“I thought it would be cool to just wear our volleyball uniforms or something!” Hinata answered brightly, already expecting Kageyama’s answer, “And we could also do like zombie paint on our faces! Hiro-kun says that they brought some face paint that we can use.”

The other boy seemed to consider the idea for a short moment before shrugging his shoulders. “...Fine.”

“Wow,” Hinata said, blinking up at him, “I’m surprised you actually agreed.”

Kageyama scoffed lightly, looking away. “Well, it’s just wearing our uniform. It’s not a big deal.”

Hinata hummed in thought before suddenly stopping in his tracks. 

“...Did you happen to pack your uniform?”

Kageyama paused, blinking. “...No...”

Hinata sighed, pulling at the straps of his backpack and speeding up his pace. “Let’s hurry! If we’re lucky, then maybe someone will still be around to unlock the club room for us.”

-

When they got there, the dark was just about to settle in, and there were no students in sight. Hinata was beginning to think that coming back to the club room had been a bad idea, when a familiar voice called out to them angrily.

“What are you two still doing here?!”

Hinata and Kageyama froze, sharing a hesitant look between themselves, before turning around to see a furious Iwaizumi standing behind them, eyes fierce and dark as he glared at them. Hinata had seen their vice captain angry before, but never _this_ angry. And never directed at him. The orange-haired boy instinctively shrunk into himself when Iwaizumi directed his heated glare right at him.

“Is that Chibi-chan and Tobio-chan?”

Hinata felt himself freeze up at the sound of Oikawa's playful tone, watching as the brunette approach from a few paces back, accompanied by a few other third-years that he didn't recognize. When Oikawa's assessing gaze landed on him, Hinata found himself stammering, unsure of how to respond, “W-well, we…” 

He looked over at Kageyama who continued to stay silent as his cold cobalt eyes regarded everyone cautiously.

Oikawa stepped up to stand beside Iwaizumi, his movements languid and casual, a complete contrast to the stiff posture of the boy next to him. “I have to say I’m surprised. You two wouldn’t be trying to break curfew, would you?”

Hinata felt himself flush guiltily. “We were just—”

“We forgot some things in our lockers and came back to get them,” Kageyama quickly interjected, voice flat and seemingly disinterested. Hinata watched him nervously from the corner of his eye, internally wondering how the other boy was managing to keep his cool.

Oikawa’s gaze slid over to the raven-haired boy, raising a brow at the explanation, as if not believing it for a moment, but Iwaizumi’s expression became slightly less angry, which made Hinata almost sigh out-loud in relief.

“Fine. Come on. I’ll unlock the club room door for you,” Iwaizumi said, walking past them to head up the stairs to the club room. “But be quick about it. You guys should be heading home right away.”

Hinata and Kageyama dutily followed their vice captain, but Hinata found his gaze unwittingly drawing back to Oikawa, who was still watching them with that inscrutable expression, and then to the other third years that were beginning to whisper amongst themselves.

Hinata peered over his shoulder, watching as one of the girls leaned in to say something in Oikawa’s ear, causing the tall brunette to chuckle and smile playfully back at her. 

_Oh._ Hinata felt an uncomfortable clenching in his chest. _Was that his date?_ He hated himself for even bothering to think about it—especially not now when he and Kageyama were about to get berated for trying to sneak out past curfew.

But then Oikawa suddenly looked up, meeting his eyes dead on, the corner of his mouth curling upwards as if _he knew he had caught him watching,_ and Hinata jolted forward and tried not to let the heat creep back up to his cheeks.

When they walked into the club room, Iwaizumi lingered by the doorframe, dark green eyes watching them both closely. Hinata made a huge show about going up his locker, as if he was trying to get something really important, and as he made his way past Kageyama, the two shot each other questioning glances.

_Were they still going to go through with it?_

“So what was so important that you were both willing to break curfew in order to come back and get it?” Iwaizumi asked impatiently from the doorway. Hinata gulped, hoping his posture didn’t betray his nervousness, and from the corner of his eyes, he watched Kageyama intentionally avoid grabbing his uniform, instead pulling out his extra pair of shoes and placing them into his open backpack in front of him. The dark-haired boy shot him another look.

_Right._ That made sense. It would be too suspicious if they grabbed their uniforms. Plus, costumes weren't necessary to their plan anyway, and internally Hinata wished that they had just forgone the idea all together. He followed Kageyama’s lead and avoided grabbing his uniform, and instead examining his locker to see what else he could stuff into his backpack when a flash of silver caught his eye.

It was the lighter that Matsukawa had tossed to him that morning when he first found out about the _Seijoh no Akuryō._ Hinata blinked at it, and almost on impulse, grabbed it and placed it in his pocket.

“Well?” Iwaizumi asked again, and Hinata turned, opening his mouth to respond but stopped short when he saw Oikawa standing next to him in the doorway, peering over at him with that same gleam in those inscrutable eyes. “Looks to me like Shou-chan and Tobio-chan were looking to get into some All Hallow’s Eve mischief."

“O-of course not, Oikawa-senpai,” Hinata responded immediately, not meeting his gaze.

“No?” Oikawa asked, eyes narrowing despite the playful lilt in his voice.

Hinata and Kageyama shook their heads in unison.

“Then you guys were definitely not planning to join that group of first years we just busted out by the auditorium?” Iwaizumi questioned, raising a brow at them. At the knowing look in his eyes, Hinata began to chew on his bottom lip nervously.

“Busted?”

Iwaizumi nodded, eyes still searching as his gaze moved from Hinata to Kageyama. “Yeah, they had this stupid plan to stay on campus until midnight waiting for the _Seijoh no Akuryō._ They were lucky we caught them and not any of the adults patrolling the area. We sent them packing.”

“That sounds _crazy_ ,” Hinata said, voice cracking at the ends as he elbowed Kageyama beside him. “Right, Kageyama?”

The raven-haired boy nodded stiffly. “We were just heading home.”

“Good,” Oikawa said firmly, and then after a beat. “Then you won’t mind if we escort you off the campus then?”

Kageyama chose then to open his mouth, eyebrows furrowing in protest, but Hinata grabbed the other boy by the shoulder before he could even think to argue. “Nope. Not at all. Let’s go right now!”

Oikawa and Iwaizumi traded unreadable glances between one another before turning to head out of the room, the two first years trailing behind, nonverbally attempting to communicate with their eyes and gesturing with their hands.

_'What do we do?'_ Hinata mouthed to the other boy frantically.

Kageyama threw him a disbelieving look. _'Nothing!_ ' He mouthed back, making a definitive gesture with his hands. _'It's over.'_

Hinata frowned and was about to mouth something back in turn when they passed by the other third-years still lingering at the bottom of the stairs, laughing and joking. The girl that Oikawa had been talking to caught his eye and gave him a sympathetic smile, and Hinata smiled weakly back at her, before turning back to the two boys ahead of them.

“So...what exactly are you guys still doing on campus then?” Hinata finally asked, trying to keep his own growing suspicions at bay when Iwaizumi turned to glance at him from over his shoulder. 

“We had some things to take care of first,” the vice captain said gruffly, turning away.

_Like what?_ Hinata immediately wanted to ask, pouting to himself. He didn't understand why the older boy was seemingly so upset with them when they were also clearly breaking curfew. 

Iwaizumi’s answer didn’t quite satisfy Hinata’s lingering curiosity, but it was enough to keep him quiet for the rest of the way as he and Kageyama were led back towards the entrance of the school. Surprisingly still, there was no one to be found—not even a single adult patrolling the area.

“So, how are you both getting home?” Oikawa asked, quirking a brow as he looked over the two of them.

“I rode my bike here,” Hinata said automatically, gesturing to the bike racks across the courtyard. But he had been planning to leave it on campus so that he and Kageyama could go back to his place together.

“Kageyama, you ride the bus, right?” Iwaizumi asked. The raven-haired boy nodded in confirmation. And as if right on cue, a bus turned the corner, slowing down at the bus stop across the street. 

Kageyama looked back at Hinata expectantly. “Are you still wanting to stay over tonight?”

Hinata blinked in surprise at the question, not having considered it. “Um…”

“He’d have to leave his bike here, though, wouldn’t he?” Oikawa interjected, clicking his tongue in distaste with a shake of his head. “And how will Shou-chan get to school on Monday morning if his bike is left here?”

Hinata opened his mouth to respond—to say that it was _fine_ , that it had been his plan anyway, but Oikawa was already sliding up next to him, throwing an arm around his shoulder, effectively silencing him as the brunette waved dismissively at Kageyama with his other hand.

“Probably best if you catch the bus now before it leaves, Tobio-chan.”

Kageyama glared in response. “ But I—”

“Hurry up or you’ll miss it!” 

Kageyama huffed and gave Hinata one last questioning look before he turned around to jog to the bus stop before it left without him, leaving Hinata staring blankly at his retreating back.

_Huh._ Well, so much for that.

Hinata tried to ignore the feel of Oikawa’s arm still wrapped, a little too comfortably, around his shoulders and turned to look back at Iwaizumi. The dark-haired boy was regarding him quietly, green eyes wary.

“Go home, Hinata.”

Nodding his head swiftly, Hinata stepped towards the bike racks, but before he could even make it a step forward, Oikawa was tightening his grip around his shoulders and leaning down to whisper into his ear.

“Better make it back before dark, Chibi-chan.”

Hinata shivered, swallowing nervously when Oikawa finally detached himself. “You guys are going to head home soon, too, right?” He asked, forcing a weak smile onto his face. “Third years aren’t exempt from curfew, you know!” 

Hinata tried to tamper down the growing feeling of unease that continued to creep up, unsure as to why his nerves were going haywire. This was just Oikawa and Iwaizumi. His captain and vice captain. Why was he acting so weird?

Oikawa looked amused at Hinata’s attempt at humor, lips curling upwards into a smirk. “Don’t worry about us. It won’t be long now anyway.” 

The two gave him once last, thoughtful look before they turned to walk back towards the club room where they had left their friends. For a moment Hinata lingered, watching their backs as the sky began to darken around them, before turning around to head back towards his bike.

Hinata felt the small smile on his face slowly drop as he mentally replayed the events that just occurred.

There was something _off_ about Oikawa’s statement. Something that made the warning bells in his head ring insistently, like there was something he was missing. Hinata thought hard, trying to pinpoint what it was, but for the life of him, he couldn’t seem to grasp it.

_It won’t be long now._

_It won’t be long now_.

Hinata was still turning the words over in his head, even as he unlocked his bike and got on, pushing himself off of the ground with the balls of his feet so that he was propelled forward. By the time he was more than half-way home, Hinata could already make out the stars twinkling brightly above him. It was definitely long passed curfew now. Probably nearing 9PM already. It occurred to him that he hadn’t checked his phone for a long while, and after a moment’s consideration, he pulled over the side of the road to pull out the device from his coat pocket.

He had several missed messages. Frowning, Hinata quickly selected the ones from Kageyama first.

**Kageyama** (19:05): Don’t worry too much about it.

**Kageyama** (19:06): It was a stupid plan anyway. 

**Kageyama** (19:08) **:** Besides, there was no way you would have been able to solve a riddle to save your life.

**Kageyama** (19:15): Are you on your way back home now?

Hinata found himself smiling softly as he typed out a teasing response, telling the other boy that he was on his way home now and that he had seen Kageyama's scores on their last English test and they were definitely nothing to write home about.

He was still smiling when he clicked on Hiro’s texts next. Hinata realized that he hadn’t thought to actually check in on him after he and his group got busted earlier, and a part of him felt bad for not texting him sooner.

**Hiro** (18:20): Hey, Shouyou! You guys get your costumes?

**Hiro** (18:25): There’s about eight of us in total. We’ve got like a whole camp set up and everything. You’ve got to see this demon hunting gear that someone brought.

Hinata clicked on the image and saw a group of first years, most who he recognized, gathered around a little pile of supplies. There were flashlights, cans of salt, and various tech and film equipment. He wondered what use most of that stuff was in regards to demon hunting. Salt? Really? He was about to ask what happened and if they had all made it home okay when his phone vibrated again.

**Hiro** (20:13) Are you guys still coming?

Hinata blinked down at the message. _Huh?_ He checked the time on the message again. Somehow, Hiro had just sent it, despite the fact that he and the other first years would have been sent home hours before according to Oikawa and Iwaizumi. 

...But that didn’t make any sense. 

**Hinata** (20:17) ...I thought you guys got busted or something?

**Hiro** (20:19) What?! Where’d you hear that? No, we’re all still here waiting for you guys. Been here since school ended.

Hinata stared at his phone blankly, not quite comprehending what exactly was going on, when his phone vibrated again. 

**Hiro** (20:24) Only a few hours left! You guys can still make it.

Hinata checked the time again. It was already almost 8:30. If he turned around his bike, he could make it back just after 9. But what was the point in even going? Especially now that Kageyama wouldn’t be joining. The other boy was the whole reason Hinata had decided to tag along to begin with.

He was just about to text Hiro that he had changed his mind and was just going to head home instead, when something stopped him.

A thought tugging at the back of his brain.

_Why would Iwaizumi and Oikawa lie?_

It didn’t make sense. Hiro and his group were clearly still there, and it sounded like they hadn’t been discovered at all. 

Maybe they had busted another group of first years hiding in the auditorium…?

The thought sounded ridiculous even in his own head. None of it was adding up. Chewing on his bottom lip thoughtfully, Hinata looked over his shoulder at the road, back to where it led towards the school. And in the back of his head, Oikawa’s last parting words continued to echo.

_It won’t be long now…_

Hinata turned his bike around.

-

When he finally arrived back on campus, it was pitchblack outside. Surprisingly still, he had yet to encounter a single patrol car or officer enforcing the curfew. Although part of him was grateful to not have to try and avoid any adults, Hinata couldn’t help but feel even more anxious as he stared out at the dark, empty courtyard.

Hiro’s text said that they were still in the auditorium, which was on the opposite side of the school. 

Hinata nervously darted his eyes around the area, cataloguing every shadow and movement, feeling his heart begin to beat faster and faster as he walked his bike around the courtyard and towards the other side of the school.

All he had to do was go over there, make sure Hiro and the others were okay, and stay there past midnight in order to prove once and for all that there was no evil spirit haunting the school.

No big deal. Not at all. 

Because the _A_ _kuryō_ wasn’t real, it couldn’t possibly be, Hinata rationalized to himself even as he could feel the nervous thrumming of his own pulse as he swallowed nervously.

It was just a stupid story.

Hinata was just about to turn the corner that led to the auditorium when something caught his eye.

It was the gymnasium. There was a light on inside. 

_That’s weird._

Hinata thought back to a few hours earlier when he and Kageyama had left the club room. The gym had already been locked up for the night. Had Oikawa and Iwaizumi possibly gone back to the gym for some extra practice? But they would have to be long gone by now. 

Frowning to himself, he slowly walked his bike over to the entrance, tilting his head to the side curiously when he saw that one of the gym doors was cracked open.

Hinata stared hard at the metal door, transfixed. He wasn’t sure why, but something was decidedly _off_ about it. But...what?

He narrowed his eyes, stepping even closer, and that’s when he finally registered it.

There, on the metal door handle, was a distinct red smear.

Was that…?

It couldn’t be…

_Blood?_

Hinata’s breath hitched, movements becoming shaky as he took a step back and promptly dropped his bike on the grass by his feet.

Was this another prank?

It had to be.

Hinata swallowed nervously, feeling how dry his throat had become. Man, some people really took this Halloween celebration seriously. 

...Was it his team again?

No, there was no way they would all be allowed to break curfew. And he would have seen them back when he and Kageyama had been at the club room, right?

Was it...Oikawa and Iwa? And those other third-years? Were they staying after curfew to do something in the gym?

The questions continued to race in his head, and Hinata couldn’t help the restless uneasiness that seemed to settle itself into his bones, causing goosebumps to rise on the backs of his arms as he slowly approached the door. His eyes rested on the crimson, red mark on the handle.

If he didn’t know any better—he moved in closer, squinting—the red mark almost looked like a _handprint_...

And that’s when he heard the first scream.

Coming from just inside the gym before him came a high-pitched wail of terror, and Hinata instantly jumped back, eyes widening in shock.

“Somebody help me! Please help—!”

The scream was cut-off abruptly, and Hinata took a deep, steadying breath, trying to ignore the way his body seemed to be screaming at him to _run_ —to get out of there as quickly as possible and never look back. 

It’s just a prank, he told himself. _It’s just a prank. It’s just a prank._

But what if someone in there was actually in trouble?

The worrying thought made Hinata unfreeze and swallow down the rest of his fears, attempting to calm his racing heart. He just needed to look inside and check to make sure no one was hurt. That was it. And then he could go.

Biting his lip hard, Hinata moved forward, pulling the door slowly open and hoping that the sound of the creaking door wasn’t as loud as it sounded in his ringing ears.

And then he abruptly froze.

His eyes struggled to register the sight that met him as he stood in the gym doorway, blood running colder and colder by the second.

Only one of the gym lights had been switched on, bathing the room in an eerie half-lit glow. Unwittingly, Hinata felt his eyes follow the trail— _blood, that was definitely blood_ —that led from the entrance of the room where he was standing all the way to the middle where a familiar figure stood facing away from him, clutching what looked to be a limp body in his arms.

Hinata _knew_ who he was looking at.

He could tell by the distinct lines of his back and the familiar brown waves of hair that Hinata had spent months and months admiring.

_He knew who it was_.

But still, it wasn’t until the boy before him dropped the body he was holding so carelessly to the floor and Hinata saw the glassy, _dead_ eyes of the girl who had just seen not hours before— _his date, that was his date_ —that he truly began to realize what a monumental mistake this all had been.

How could he have been so stupid?

...Because it was _Oikawa_.

Hinata couldn’t stop the horrified sound that gurgled out from the back of his throat, throwing up his hands to cover his mouth instinctively to smother the noise. 

But it was too late.

Glowing amber eyes shot up to meet his, and Hinata spun around on his heel and began to run.

-

His first thought was, stupidly, that it hadn’t turned midnight yet. 

Because wasn’t that part of the story? That the _A_ _kuryō_ wouldn’t come out until midnight?

It was ridiculous of him to even ponder that, not when his mind was still flashing to the horrific images he had just seen. The blood. The body. Oikawa and his glowing amber eyes.

Hinata could feel his stomach lurch in protest, his mind flashing to the girl’s pale face, and he struggled to keep down the bile that started to rise up his throat.

How could Oikawa—the boy he had admired and looked up to, the one who stayed late with him to practice and praised him every time he did something well, the one whose very smile had charmed and enamored Hinata from the get-go—how could he possibly do this?

How could he be a _demon_?

Heart racing, Hinata eyed his surroundings wildly as he sprinted across the empty school courtyard. He cursed at himself for forgetting his bike in his haste.

Maybe he could circle back around and get it?

No. Way too dangerous. Instinctually, Hinata felt the need to put as much distance between him and his captain as possible and doubling back for his bike was a risk he couldn’t afford. 

Where could he go? Was there any place he could hide?

Shaking slightly, Hinata peered around the corner of the building, pressing himself close to the wall as he scanned the empty courtyard. His breathing came in short shallow pants when he didn’t see anyone behind him.

Maybe Oikawa hadn’t come after him? Maybe he was safe?

And then he heard it—another scream, fainter this time than the last, indicating that the person was further away. Hinata turned towards the direction it was coming from with wide eyes, realizing with dread that he recognized that voice.

“HELP! Is anybody out here! Someone help!”

It was Hiro. 

Guiltily, Hinata realized that he had once again forgotten all about Hiro and the others. He had been too caught up with what he had seen in the gym. Somehow, Oikawa must have gotten to them, too…

And then he froze in place, the sinking realization taking hold like an icy vice-like grip around his gut.

Of course. 

_Why would Iwaizumi and Oikawa lie?_

Now he definitely knew why.

“Please!! Someone!”

He couldn't just leave Hiro there. Not when he was clearly calling out for help. Hinata braced himself, giving himself a small mental countdown as he attempted to steady his breath before pushing himself from the wall and making his way towards Hiro’s voice.

“H-hello?” He called out, wincing at how shaky his voice sounded. “Hiro? Where are you?”

“Oh my god! Shouyou? Is that you? Over here!” Hiro responded back immediately, the relief evident in his voice.

Hinata quickened his steps, hope renewed at hearing his friend so near. He was okay. Hiro was okay. He turned the corner of the building, eyes widening in relief when he saw the other boy just up ahead, sitting on the ground and clutching his knee, when suddenly he felt a firm hand grip him on his shoulder—

“Chibi-chan, always trying to play hero aren’t you?” A sing-song voice drawled in his ear.

Whirling around, a scream already rising in his throat, Hinata fell back against the building, with Oikawa quickly advancing, pushing against his shoulder so that the smaller boy was crowded against the cement wall.

“You shouldn’t have come back here,” Oikawa said in that same tone, smiling in a way that made Hinata's stomach clench uncomfortably. Because that _wasn't_ Oikawa's smile. That wasn't the smile that Hinata had grown so accustomed to seeing every day—the one that brightened up the other boy's eyes and made Hinata feel all _gwahh_ and _warm_ and _happy_ —

No, this smile was cold. Mocking. _Cruel_. 

Hinata still said nothing, too frozen to even speak, and Oikawa took the opportunity to draw in even closer, leaning down so that his face was only inches away from his own. And that’s when Hinata registered the smattered droplets of blood across the other boy’s face. The crimson, red smear against his left cheek and down the side of his neck, staining his once white shirt.

Hinata tried not to stare.

“Aren’t you going to save your friend, Shou-chan?”

Hinata’s eyes darted to the side where Hiro had been, but another dark, towering figure stood over him. Another familiar form.

Iwaizumi.

Hinata shivered when he saw his vice captain drop the now limp body to the floor.

“Hmm. Too late,” Oikawa said, voice taking on a mocking tone.

Hinata felt tears prick at his eyes as he turned back to stare up at Oikawa. The taller boy was still staring down at him, but he was close—too close. Hinata couldn’t breathe.

“W-why are you doing this?”

Oikawa smirked, raising a hand to play with a wayward strand of orange hair. “You know why.”

Suddenly, Iwaizumi appeared behind Oikawa, dark eyes widening in apprehension when he realized who he was staring at. “Hinata.”

“What are you doing here?” His voice was angry, almost panicked. “Didn’t you go home?”

“I—” Hinata wanted to rub at the tears in his eyes. He wanted to cry, torn between the feeling of betrayal and confusion and fear, and the other turbulent emotions that threatened to overtake him. He wanted to shout at them and demand answers, but he was far too confused and near-hysterical to even attempt to formulate the right words.

All he could do was stand there _frozen_ like some sort of idiot staring at the two of the people he admired most like he didn't even recognize them anymore...like they were _strangers._

“I came back,” Hinata said weakly, his voice cracking at the ends when he remembered the reason why. His eyes strayed over Oikawa’s shoulder to the prone figure laying on the ground in the courtyard.

Iwaizumi followed his gaze, expression becoming solemn and resigned when he realized what Hinata was referring to. At his expression, Hinata rapidly shook his head in disbelief, feeling the panicked tears begin to fall from his eyes. _No, no, no_... _what was going on?_

“I—I don’t understand…” 

Oikawa pursed his lips, resting a hand on his hip as he regarded Hinata speculatively. “Come on, Chibi-chan, you can put two and two together, right?”

Hinata knew what he _wanted_ to say. It was on the tip of his tongue—the accusation that he was too afraid to put into words.

_The Seijoh no Akuryō._

But if Oikawa was the demon itself, Hinata flitted his eyes over to the other dark-haired boy beside him, then what was _Iwaizumi_? 

Unlike the strange, inhuman aura that Oikawa was projecting with the golden glow of his eyes and the sinister expression on his face, Iwaizumi still looked decidedly the same...reassuringly human in a way that Hinata desperately comforted in, despite the sense of betrayal that he still felt when looking at the older boy.

The question in his eyes must have been evident because Iwaizumi suddenly sighed, frowning back at him. “This... _what he is._..it only happens once a year. He’s a...”

Iwaizumi looked back at Oikawa, and the brunette's expression darkened imperceptibly. " _Say it_. Go on, Iwa-chan."

“ _Half_ demon," Iwaizumi murmured, almost too soft for Hinata to hear. “Every other day, he’s himself. He’s _normal_. Just a kid like us.”

He’s _nothing_ like us, Hinata wanted to shout, feeling those glowing eyes watch him.

“But every Hallow’s Eve, _this_ side takes over...and, well…” Iwaizumi’s eyes took on an imploring look, “I make sure that he’s under control. That he only takes what he _needs._ ” 

“What he _needs_?” Hinata found himself saying incredulously, courage rising despite the shakiness in his hands. “He’s _hurting_ innocent people.”

Hinata glared at them, thinking of Hiro lying on the floor only a few feet away from him, and felt his anger begin to surge. “And you’re just okay with that?”

“He doesn’t really have a choice,” Iwaizumi said, voice steady and soft. “He has to do it to survive. If he doesn't, well...”

"Then my demon side becomes more dominant, you see," Oikawa explained, his voice a low purr as he continued to lean in close to Hinata, causing the smaller boy to press himself further against the wall behind him. "It's either I feed one day out of the year or the hunger keeps me _wanting_ and _wanting..."_

"You understand, don't you, Shou-chan?"

Hinata dazedly tried to think through his cluttered thoughts, tried to push through his crippling shock and fear to find some semblance of rationality. “But the stories say that—”

“What did I say about those silly little stories, Chibi-chan?” Oikawa shook his head, clicking his tongue in distaste. “You shouldn’t listen to them...”

Hinata lifted his back away from the wall, slowly edging himself around and backing away even as Oikawa took slow measured steps forward, a terrible smile growing on his face.

“...Because they’re usually wrong.”

Iwaizumi was silent for a long moment watching him before turning to Oikawa. “If you hurt Hinata, you’re going to regret it, Oikawa. I know it. Just let him go.”

“After what he’s seen?” Oikawa asked immediately, eyes glinting gold. 

This wasn’t _his_ Oikawa, Hinata reminded himself, trying not to let the demon's words dig any deeper than they already were. This was someone else. _Something_ else. He continued to back away, gnawing on his bottom lip as he looked from one boy to the other.

“Hinata won’t tell anyone,” But even as he spoke, Iwaizumi was suddenly locking eyes with him, trying to communicate over Oikawa’s shoulder, his chin jutting to the side. Hinata nodded imperceptibly, desperately hoping that he hadn't given himself away.

Suddenly, Iwaizumi surged forward, wrapping his arms around Oikawa's body to pull him back and restrain him. In an instant, Hinata was turning around and running, determined to get as much distance between them as possible and not once looking back.

“Fine, I’ll let you get a head start, Chibi-chan!” Oikawa called out cheerfully from behind him.

-

Hinata’s heart was pounding so hard, he could feel it in his throat as he swallowed, desperately trying to come up with some semblance of a plan. There was no way he was going to outrun him. Even though he always had relied on his speed, Hinata knew deep in his gut that there was no way he was going to be able to outrun a _demon_.

The only thing he had left in his arsenal was to somehow _fight back_.

But somehow, that sounded even more ridiculous. Though, what choice did he have?

Hinata found himself retracing his steps back to the gym entrance where his bike still lay forgotten on the ground.

He could take his bike and try to find the nearest police station. It was only about 5 miles away. That wasn't far at all. But something inside of him told him that he would still never be able to make it. Somehow, he _knew_ , running away wasn't an option.

So...how could he fight back? 

He needed a weapon.

Hinata narrowed his eyes and darted into the dimly lit gym. Glancing around, he scanned the room for anything that he could use. He tried to not let his eyes focus on the body that still lay there in the middle of the room, and the blood— _why was there so much_ _blood?—_ when a thought suddenly occurred to him.

-

_“You could hurt someone with that. Throw it away!”_

_“...I wasn’t going to stab someone with it...”_

-

Hinata sprinted across the gym, grimacing when he accidentally stepped into an unmistakably red puddle in his haste, causing him to slide across the gym floor. He forced himself not to look down at his shoes, knowing that if he saw his white trainers now stained red, he would probably throw up right then and there. 

Pulling open the storage door, Hinata darted inside and closed it shut behind him, enclosing himself in the darkness within.

It was pitch-black, way too dark to see anything inside the room, but Hinata didn't dare turn on the lights.

Hinata reached into his side pocket to pull out his newly purchased flashlight and then froze.

His _fucking phone_.

He pulled it out quickly and flipped it open. His eyes shot up to the top of his screen and almost screeched in disbelief when he saw that he had only one bar of service. Biting his lip, he decided that it was worth a shot and quickly typed out a text, praying that it somehow went through.

But he couldn't afford to wait around and see if it sent. Hinata grabbed at his flashlight and quickly flipped it on, shining light onto the various sports equipment in the room. Not wasting any time, he began pulling open cabinets to see if there was anything he could use. In his haste, he accidentally knocked down several jugs of cleaning supplies to the floor, causing the liquid to splash at his feet, the smell of chemicals immediately hitting his nose. 

_"Shit."_

Shaking his head, his eyes finally fell on the broken broom at the back of the room, propped up on the side. There were two pieces. The wooden handle that had splintered off was lying on the floor beside it, while the longer piece with the broom still attached to it was laying against the wall. Mentally, Hinata thanked Kindaichi for having been too lazy to actually throw it away like he had said he would earlier that day.

Hinata slowly made his way over and picked up the smaller wooden piece, eyeing the jagged splinters. After a moment of consideration, he slipped it inside the front of his pants, hidden beneath his jacket. Then, grabbing the other half, he brandished it with both hands.

It was only seconds later when the storage door slammed open, causing the dim gymnasium light to spill into the darkened room. Hinata felt the hairs raise on the back of his neck when he saw Oikawa’s form framed the doorway, smiling at him in that dangerously amused way. 

“There you are.”

Hinata inwardly shivered at his tone and tried his best to look intimidating, brandishing the broomstick before him with shaking hands.

“H-how did you find me so fast?”

Oikawa shrugged lightly, leisurely stepping into the room, taking his time. “Well, for one, I could _sense_ where you were…”

Hinata could only gulp at the implications of that statement, mind already racing at all of the horrible possibilities.

“And two…”

Oikawa stepped closer, and his eyes dropped down to Hinata’s bloodstained shoes with an amused eyebrow raise. “You kind of led me here, Chibi-chan.”

Hinata followed his gaze and froze in realization. Like an idiot, he had tracked the blood into the storage room, basically providing Oikawa a big red arrow pointing to where he was hiding that screamed ‘HERE I AM’. If he wasn't so absolutely terrified for his life, Hinata would probably be berating himself for being so ridiculously _stupid_.

Oikawa drew closer, and Hinata immediately brought the broom up against his chest threateningly, causing the demon to chuckle at the sight. “Stay back!” 

“Adorable.”

Moving with slow and measured movements, Oikawa stepped right into Hinata's personal space, grabbing the pointed broom stick firmly and crushing it into splintered pieces in his hand.

Hinata yelped at the action and stumbled backwards. He would have crashed to the floor if Oikawa hadn’t quickly darted out a hand to reach out and catch him around his arm. And staring up at the older boy with wide, fearful eyes—at the _demon_ who wore the handsome face of his crush—a part of him wished he would have just let him fall.

Oikawa’s hand moved from his arm to grip him tightly around his back to pull him close, while his other hand reached up to gently brush Hinata’s bangs away from his face.

“I really wish you would have just stayed at home tonight, Shouyou.”

Hinata couldn’t breath, couldn’t think, not with Oikawa so close and his eyes watching him as if he was going to devour him whole...and maybe he _was_. Maybe that was exactly what he was planning to do.

The brunette pulled him so that he was pressed up against his chest—against his bloodstained shirt. Hinata tried not to think about it too hard. And it was difficult to focus when he was trying to track every single one of Oikawa’s movements—the arm around his back dropping to rest at his waist and the other hand still hovering from where he touched his hair moved lower to follow the line of his neck, tracing his collarbone.

Hinata could feel his mouth start to dry at the movements, and he swallowed nervously, Adam's apple bobbing.

Oikawa’s eyes seemed to gleam at the action.

He leaned forward and nuzzled the side of Hinata’s face, and the smaller boy froze at the action. Hinata tried to think of something, _anything_ , that could help to buy himself some time. “W-wait! The riddle! That’s a thing, right?”

Oikawa paused in his movements, humming against the soft skin of his neck, causing Hinata to shiver in turn.

“If I get the riddle right, then you have to leave me alone, right?”

Huffing a disappointed sigh, the demon moved his head away from Hinata's neck for just a moment to regard him closely. "Fine."

”But, just so you know, I did the riddle thing for _fun.”_

”You mean—“ Hinata cut himself off when Oikawa merely smiled at him, amber eyes flashing in amusement.

”You honestly think a riddle would be the deciding factor on whether or not I kill someone?” The brunette chuckled, almost crooning at Hinata when his expression grew even more frightened. “But, tell you what. I’ll humor you this time.”

  
Hinata took a shaky breath when the demon leaned in close again.

“ _All day I will follow you..."_ Oikawa recited softly against the soft, sensitive skin of his collarbone, " _No matter how fast you run…"_

Hinata bit back the terrified sound that almost escaped him when he felt a wet tongue dart out and lick a stripe along the side of his neck.

“ _What am I?_ ”

“W-what?” Hinata gasped out when he suddenly felt a mouth suck hard against his collarbone, teeth grazing along his skin, causing his eyes to flutter to stay open.

“That’s the riddle, Shou-chan," Oikawa said, pulling away slightly to give him a lazy, wicked smirk.

Hinata couldn’t even begin to focus on the words to solve the riddle, not when he couldn't dare breathe, his mind clouding up at the feel of Oikawa's tongue on his neck and the way that his eyes seemed to melt in an amber glow when he looked up at Hinata through his bangs. 

"What? Don't know the answer?"

“I—”

“Last chance…”

Oikawa's mouth was traveling upwards now, sucking wet, open-mouth kisses right below his jaw. Hinata bit down on his own lip hard, drawing blood, but refusing to make a sound or acknowledge just how _good_ it felt. Because this wasn't _his_ Oikawa. It _wasn't_.

_All day I will follow you, no matter how fast you run..._

Come on. Think, think, _think._

But the task was near impossible. Not when his fear was near-suffocating. And not with the brunette pressed so impossibly close that Hinata could feel every exhale as a soft puff of air against his bared neck. And suddenly Oikawa was pulling his mouth back to lean in and whisper in his ear, and Hinata had to squeeze his eyes shut tight when the grip around his waist becoming near-bruising, _"_ The answer you were looking for was _shadow,_ Chibi-chan."

And that was when Hinata remembered the splintered broom handle stuffed in his pants, and just as he felt Oikawa begin to lower his head back down once more, he swiftly pulled it out and thrust it forward—hard—right into Oikawa’s chest.

Oikawa made a surprised sound, staggering back, amber eyes wide open in shock. And Hinata acted fast, shoving him away from his body and darting around him. The demon fell to his knees, and Hinata didn’t waste any time moving towards the exit, almost slipping on the cleaning chemicals that he had spilt on the floor.

Hinata froze for a moment staring down at the puddle at his feet and smelling the sharp chemical scent.

An idea suddenly occurred to him.

Pulling out the silver lighter out of coat pocket, Hinata flipped it open and stared at the small flame it produced in his hand.

_This was probably a stupid idea_.

He dropped the open lighter onto the puddle and darted out of the storage room, skidding across the gym floor just as the flames begin to catch and quickly spread behind him.

As he burst through the gym doors, his eyes immediately landed on his bike and made to lunge toward it when something else caught his eye.

“Iwa-san.”

The dark-haired boy looked conflicted, looking into the gym where dark, grey smoke was beginning to form and then back at Hinata.

“Go.”

Hinata didn't need to be told twice. He was on his bike and already miles away when he heard the first sounds of sirens blare loudly into the night. 

-

_"At least five students found dead in shocking chemical fire at Aoba Johsai High School that took place on Halloween Night. This tragic turn of events is just another in a series of mysterious episodes that surround the so-called local legend of the _Seijoh no Akuryō_ —”_

_"—beloved volleyball star and captain, Oikawa Tooru, was one of the many victims in last night's tragic fire. Due to the close proximity of his body to the source of the flames, his body was almost unidentifiable by the time authorities arrived at the scene _—"__

_"For the remainder of the school year, students of Aoba Johsai High School will be displaced into nearby campuses until proper investigations are held into what exactly caused the fire and if these_ _mysterious disappearances of students every year are somehow connected..."_

-

**Five years later…**

**-**

“Obrigado pela comida!” _Thank you for the food!_

“De nada! Vejo você na próxima vez!” _You're welcome! See you next time!_

Hinata waved cheerfully over his shoulder and readjusted his baseball cap before pedaling down the narrow street.

He had been living in Brazil for the past year now, and although he was still getting adjusted to the culture and the people, Hinata found himself embracing the new change in scenery with open arms. When he had heard about the opportunity to train in beach volleyball thousands of miles away from his home, he had immediately jumped at the chance. As much as he loved Japan, there were too many memories there...

Too many things that he still wanted to forget.

Hinata looked down at his phone. He just had one more delivery to go before he could call it a night. Looking at the address, it looked to be a little further out of his usual route, but not by much. Not wanting the food to get cold, he began pedaling even faster, and by the time he got there, the sunset was already sinking past the distant skyline. He relied on the sparse lampposts that lined the street in order to find the right address.

Leaning his bike against the wall, he knocked on the door.

“Olá! Entrega de alimentos!” _Hello! Food delivery!_

Hinata waited a moment, standing patiently at the door. But for every minute that passed, he felt a frown growing on his face. Was anyone home? Did he get the wrong address?

He double-checked the numbers on the door, nodding to himself when they matched the ones listed on his phone. Shrugging to himself, he bent down to leave the food on the doorstep when the door finally creaked open. 

Hinata looked up from where he was crouched, eyes traveling up the long, tanned legs and broad chest, all the way up to a pair of familiar, gleaming brown eyes, and immediately froze in place.

_But it couldn't be._

_He was dead._

_He was **dead**._

But there Oikawa was, leaning against the doorframe of a small, quaint apartment in Rio de Janeiro as if he _belonged_ there, as if there was nothing out of place about him there at all. 

"...I hope my food hasn't gotten cold?" 

Hinata let an embarrassingly loud screech escape his throat as he stumbled backwards, lunging for his bike and half-running and half-pedaling away as he desperately prayed that he was only dreaming. 

Because there was no way Oikawa could somehow be back from the dead five years after Hinata had killed him...

Right?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (1) PART TWO will hopefully be out soon!
> 
> (2) This story was greatly inspired by an old RK fanfic I read awhile back! If I could find it again, I would definitely link it here!
> 
> (3) Follow me on Twitter for more fic updates! 
> 
> [@earlgrey_mt](https://twitter.com/earlgrey_mt/status/1317350535348031488?s=20)


	2. no matter how far you run

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Halloween, everybody!!
> 
> Chapter Warning: descriptions of sleep paralysis, mild horror elements

That night, Hinata couldn’t sleep.

In the humid room, with the fan whirring softly above him and the window cracked just a sliver to let a bit of the cool night air seep through into the bedroom, Hinata blinked up at the ceiling, unable to shake the image of the man in the doorway.

The perfectly tousled brown hair, the quirk of his mouth, the amusement in his eyes. It was all _too_ familiar.

_“...I hope my food hasn’t gotten cold?”_

It couldn’t have been him.

It _couldn’t_ have been.

…But what if it _was_?

When he closed his eyes, unwanted images instantly flooded his mind—flashes of blood on the normally pristine gym floor, amber eyes that seemed to glitter in the dark, and that terribly cruel smile Oikawa had flashed as he leaned in closer and closer—Hinata shook his head rapidly in an attempt to clear his thoughts.

Before he could change his mind, Hinata reached out and grabbed his phone from the bedside table, quickly tugging off the charging chord and scrolling through his contacts before selecting the one he wanted. There was only one person who would have answers, and although a part of him loathed to admit it, Hinata had no one else to turn to.

The phone started ringing in his hand for a few seconds before someone picked up.

“Hello?”

At the sound of the other man’s voice, Hinata felt his chest clench uncomfortably. _It’s fine. It’s fine. It’s fine._

“...Hinata, is that you?”

“Yeah, it’s me…” Hinata took a deep breath, cradling the phone close to his ear. “Hi, Iwa-san.”

There was the sound of shifting on the other line, before Iwaizumi’s low voice rumbled in his ear. “It’s been a while.” 

It had. Five years, to be exact. 

When the students at their school had initially dispersed to different campuses across the prefecture, Iwaizumi, along with Matsukawa and Hanamaki, had decided to stick together and attend Tokonami High. The decision had come as a relief to Hinata, who had been doing his best to avoid the older boy at every given opportunity, despite the fact Iwaizumi had taken it upon himself to try and make amends.

But ever since that night, Hinata had never been able to look at Iwaizumi the same way.

“Yeah. It has,” he said softly into the receiver, biting the inside of his cheek. 

“How is Brazil?”

There was an earnest lilt to Iwaizumi’s tone, and Hinata recognized the other man’s desire to catch-up and maintain some semblance of _normal_. He fought down the inevitable feelings of resentment that rose to the surface, leaving a bad aftertaste in his mouth.

He didn’t have time to exchange forced pleasantries—he needed the truth.

“...I saw him, Iwa-san,” Hinata said, hoping that his voice helped to relay the gravity of his words.

He waited for the tell-tale intake of breath, a change in demeanor, or any sort of indication that would reveal that Iwaizumi knew more than he let on.

But the other man only paused for a moment before asking, “Who?” his voice betraying nothing.

“You really don’t know?”

A sigh. “Hinata, just tell me.” 

Hinata gritted his teeth, hating the spike of unease at having to say his name out loud. “Oikawa.”

“...I saw him," He clutched at the sheets by his side with his free hand, his knuckles turning white as he forced himself to continue, "...here in Brazil.”

There was a long stretch of silence, the only sound from the other line was the other man breathing, and Hinata involuntarily found himself counting each intake of breath in an attempt to ground himself as he waited for a response.

“That’s...not possible, Hinata.”

“I was there that night, remember? There’s just no way he could have survived,” Iwaizumi said, his voice firm and reassuring. “With the stake through the chest and the fire...You killed him, there’s no doubt about it. You did what I didn’t have the strength to do.”

The other man hesitated for a moment before continuing.

“...He’s _gone_.”

And those were the words he _wanted_ to hear—the entire reason why he called Iwaizumi to begin with. Hinata should have felt relieved, or at least comforted by the fact that the other man was just as convinced as he was at the demon's demise.

But then, why did he still feel so anxious despite that?

“You promise...?” Hinata mumbled into the phone, his eyes still staring upwards at his bedroom fan as he spoke. “You promise that you aren’t lying to me?” He tried to keep his voice steady, hating the way that he was suddenly reverted back to a bumbling first year in his uncertainty.

“...That you aren’t protecting him again?”

He hoped that Iwaizumi would miss the way his voice cracked at the end of his question, but knew that it was probably impossible to ignore.

“I—I guess I deserve that,” Iwaizumi admitted, and there was a softness in his voice that hadn’t been there before. “But, I promise, Hinata. I haven’t heard from him since that night. There’s no way he survived that fire. They found his body there…”

“...But how can we be sure?” Hinata asked, feeling the anxiety stew in the pit of his stomach. He knew what question he really wanted to voice out loud—the question that he was afraid to hear the answer for.

“How do you know if a demon is really _dead_?”

Because yes, he had stabbed Oikawa with a makeshift wooden stake right through the chest. And yes, just for good measure, he _had_ lit the entire gymnasium up in flames as he made his ill-conceived escape into the night.

...And yes, they _did_ find a body—the flesh and bone charred so badly in the chemical fire that it was almost unrecognizable in the remains of the storage room.

But somehow that was still not enough to assure Hinata on the matter. That man in the doorway...he had looked _exactly_ like Oikawa. 

“I...guess you can’t be…” Iwaizumi trailed off with uncertainty, “But, Hinata, if he was alive this whole time...why would he choose now to show up? It’s been five years…”

Hinata frowned as he stared up at his ceiling. When his eyes started to burn from not blinking for so long, he used his free arm to rub at them, burying his face in the crook of his elbow.

“...I don’t know.”

He heard Iwaizumi sigh softly from the other end of the line. “Do you think that maybe your mind is playing tricks on you?” He paused, “Are you working yourself too hard?”

And it was so like Iwaizumi to instantly worry about his health—the man had made a whole career out of it after all. But his misplaced concern, despite how genuine it seemed to be, only served to make Hinata feel a surge of irrational anger rise to the surface. 

_He’s a good person,_ Hinata tried to remind himself. _He just made a bad decision to help someone he cared about. Don’t keep blaming him._

This was the boy he had looked up to for so long, the one person on their old team who could reign all of their unruly and temperamental personalities with a single corrective stare and a few gruff words. Iwaizumi was one of the few people that Hinata had trusted wholeheartedly to always do the right thing no matter what.

_It’s not his fault,_ his mind continued to reassure.

But then involuntarily, Hinata's mind flashed back to that Halloween night, and the image of a boy— _his friend_ —laying terribly still and unmoving in the middle of the courtyard, and the dark figure bent over him, stifling the screams that followed.

_“Shouyou! Is that you? Over here!”_

Hinata buried his face even deeper into his elbow and breathed deeply through his nose.

“...Maybe,” he whispered into the receiver.

“Just get some rest, Hinata,” Iwaizumi coaxed, and his voice was so soothing that Hinata found himself sleepily blinking, turning around in his bed so that he could lay on his side, the phone still pressed to his ear.

“Okay.”

There was a lull of silence, nothing more than the sound of them both breathing on the line, before there was an intake of breath, and then Iwaizumi started to speak again. “Hinata, I—”

But Hinata hung up before he could hear the rest of what the other man had to say, tossing the phone to the side of the bed carelessly as his body curled into itself underneath the sheets.

As much as he wanted to, he just wasn’t ready to forgive Iwaizumi.

Not yet, anyway.

And as Hinata finally felt himself drift off into sleep, he couldn’t help but wonder who he was more upset with—Iwaizumi, for helping Oikawa...

...Or at _himself_ , for not knowing if he would have done the same thing had he been in the other boy’s position.

-

_He couldn’t move._

_Couldn’t breathe._

_There was a distinct feeling of being weighed down, a steady pressure against his body, as he tried to will his limbs to move, but his arms and legs were like lead as they laid still on the bed beneath him_ — _heavy and useless._

_He tried to open his mouth to speak, a desperate attempt to suck air into his lungs so that he could breathe, but his entire body was frozen in place, unwilling to cooperate with him._

_...Almost as though he wasn’t in control of it any longer._

_Help._

_There was a prickling sense of unease that started like a seed in his chest and began to unfurl and grow, spreading like vines up his spine to rest like a coil at the base of his throat._

_Because there was something distinctively_ **_wrong_** _._

_Help me._

_Wrong, wrong, wrong._

_Amber eyes flashed in the dark, and then suddenly he was suffocating, struggling to breathe as his mind became hazy and lightheaded._

**_Help me._**

_He screamed._

-

Hinata woke up gasping, pulse in his throat, startled to find his pillow covering his face, stifling his breath. He shoved it off, ignoring how it toppled off of the side of the bed and onto the floor as he proceeded to take heaping lungfuls of air to calm down his racing heart.

_It was just a dream._

_Just a dream._

-

“Como foi o treino hoje, Ninja Shouyou?”

Hinata was startled out of his thoughts at the sound of his nickname, head shooting up in surprise, and instantly offering a sheepish smile when he caught the fond gaze of the restaurant owner from across the room.

“Ah, desculpe! A prática foi boa!” _Ah, sorry! Practice was good!_

The older woman shook her head with a soft smile, slipping off her apron to rest it on the counter next to her. “Are you okay with watching the store for a bit while I run out and do some errands?”

“Claro!” Hinata said brightly with a nod of his head, watching as the older woman winked at him and left out the front door not a moment later, the bell jingling lightly as the door closed behind her.

It was still early evening, and the awkward time between lunch and dinner meant very few customers would be around. Wanting to at least be productive for the time being, Hinata got the broom from the closet near him and began sweeping around the shop, humming a soft tune under his breath as he did so.

When the bell on the door jingled again, indicating the arrival of a customer, Hinata looked up, a polite greeting on the tip of his tongue, when suddenly he felt his insides turn to ice at the sight of familiar chestnut orbs staring curiously back at him.

“Oh, there you are.”

Hinata fought the urge to scream as he stared back with wide eyes, frozen in place.

The Oikawa-look alike stared at him for a long moment, and Hinata waited for that tell-tale amber glint in his eyes to make an appearance, for the cruel smile to twist along his lips—but instead, the other man gave him a quick once over and tilted his head to the side, regarding him with slight interest.

“You dropped this last night.” He held up a familiar volleyball, the one he usually had tied to the back of his bike, and Hinata blinked owlishly down at it and back at him. 

“You...biked away so fast, so I thought I would stop by today and drop it off,” the brunette explained, shrugging his shoulders casually.

“Oh.” 

“Here.”

When the taller man took a step closer, lifting up the ball he held in his hands in offering, Hinata automatically took a step backward, eyes narrowed distrustingly as he clutched the broom tight in his hands. 

The _not_ Oikawa eyed his reaction with a lifted brow, gaze moving from Hinata’s tense demeanor and down to the ball in his hands, pausing mid-step. “O- _kay_ , then.”

“I guess I’ll just...leave this here, then.”

The other man bent down to play the volleyball on the floor by the exit, and Hinata watched him warily from a safe distance away, chewing the inside of his cheek nervously. When the Oikawa look-alike turned to the exit, opening the door and causing the bell to chime in turn, he suddenly paused and looked back over his shoulder at Hinata.

“By the way, you should be careful with that…”

The brunette gestured with his free hand, and Hinata followed his gaze to the broom he held in his hands, before blinking back up at the other man as his lips curled upwards showing a flash of white teeth.

“...Those things can be really dangerous, especially if they _break._ Wouldn’t want to accidentally hurt someone, right?”

His words were equivalent to being doused with ice water, and Hinata gaped in shock as the brunette gave a small, cheery wave back at him before walking out of the restaurant, the door clicking shut behind him.

Hinata dropped the broom in his hands and didn’t even process as it clattered noisily to the ground.

_What the fuck just happened._

_-_

“See you later, Kageyama!” Hoshiumi called out to him as they parted ways after practice.

The dark-haired man waved at his teammates politely over his shoulder, pulling his phone absentmindedly out of his jacket pocket to check the time, and blinked in surprise when he saw that he had a new notification.

_1 Missed Call - Hinata Shouyou_

Kageyama frowned at the screen. It had been a while since he had heard from the other man. The two spoke often enough, whether it was on their Karasuno group chat with the rest of their former team or on days when Hinata felt so inclined to share random, almost ill-witted snapshots of his day-to-day in Rio. 

But the two rarely ever spoke on the phone. 

It had been two years since their high school graduation, and over one year since Hinata had packed up his life and left for Brazil with barely a warning or a backwards glance to spare. 

_No, not left._

_Ran_ , his mind corrected— _ever since Hinata ran away to Brazil_.

Sometimes Kageyama couldn’t help but reflect on how much had changed over the years, especially in regards to his former teammate. 

The truth of the matter was, Hinata hadn’t been the same ever since that Halloween night.

Even after they had transferred to Karasuno together, there was something decidedly _off_ about the other boy.

On the surface, it wasn’t too obvious. One could attribute Hinata’s open skittishness to his normal pre-game nerves getting the best of him. And when Hinata was focused on a match, it was almost near impossible to notice it at all.

...But there were moments in between when Kageyama would catch Hinata looking over his shoulder, and those hazel eyes would flash with something akin to anxiety...or caution—like Hinata was _afraid._

 _  
_ But of what? Kageyama didn’t know for sure.

Part of him knew that Hinata’s behavior had to do with the incident that occurred five years ago. It was the only thing that would help explain it. And despite the fact that he could still remember the details of that night so clearly, Kageyama couldn’t shake the feeling that there was something _important_ that he was missing—and that if he just thought about that night hard enough, it would finally come to him.

But no matter how many times he replayed the events of that night in his head—from staying after school, flashlights in hand, talking about the _Akuryō_ to the moment when Iwaizumi and Oikawa confronted them outside of the club room, staring back at the dumbfounded expression on Hinata’s face when Kageyama had been forced to catch the bus, leaving him behind—he still was no closer to uncovering the truth.

All of those memories came back to him in quick, successive flashes of color and dialogue. And yet, still, there was something calling for his attention at the back of his mind...

_What had happened next?_

Kageyama had spent the entire bus ride unnecessarily worrying over the other boy, still waiting for Hinata to respond to his last text by the time he had made it home.

**Kageyama:** Hey. Did you make it home yet?

But even as it got darker and darker out, the hour becoming far past the time that it would have taken the other boy to bike home, Hinata still had not responded. At the time, Kageyma had not worried too much about it. He imagined that the other boy had probably tired himself out biking home and promptly passed out, safe in his bed, long before it had gotten too dark out.

And then, as he had laid in his own bed, finally letting the tiredness of the day’s events lull him to sleep, his phone had suddenly vibrated loudly on his bedside table. The sound had jolted Kageyama back into wakefulness, torn between the temptations of sleep and the curiosity of who could be messaging him so late at night.

His curiosity had won out.

...It was a text from Hinata.

**Hinata:** demon oikawa danger

Kageyama had narrowed his eyes at the phone screen, blinking hard against the vestiges of sleep that lingered as he tried to make sense of the message.

Was it a mistake? Was Hinata trying to make some sort of joke? He had spent the next few long minutes trying to decipher the meaning behind it, fingers hovering over the keyboard as he wondered how to respond.

And that’s when he heard the sirens.

Loud and blaring as they pierced into the quiet of the night.

His phone had vibrated again, and clicking out of Hinata’s text Kageyama saw that Iwaizumi had just texted in their group chat—a single, worrying message.

**Iwaizumi** (12:00) Something happened last night. It’s...not good.

**Matsukawa** (12:05) ...What do you mean? What happened?

**Hanamaki** (12:10) ...Turn on the news.

And feeling the dread forming like lead at the pit of his stomach, Kageyama threw his bed covers off of himself, ignoring the cold air of the room as he padded out into the hallway and down to the living area as quiet as he could and turned on the television.

And then he saw it for himself. 

The fire.

The kids.

_Oikawa_.

Even as the newscasters continued to relay information of what had happened that night in low, sympathetic tones, Kageyama struggled to trudge through his initial shock and horror to make sense of the story that unfolded before him, watching blankly as his phone lit up with vibration after vibration as it laid forgotten on the couch beside him.

School had been canceled indefinitely after that.

And it was months later, when he and Hinata had been transferred to Karasuno to finish off the school year that Kageyama had remembered the text at all.

-

_“Hinata.”_

_Even though they were sitting right next to each other on the bus, Hinata still noticeably jumped at the sound of his name, and when he turned to face him, his hazel eyes still reflected a sense of uncertainty._

_The smaller boy’s expression only spurred Kageyama on to ask his next question._

_“What happened that night?” Kageyama asked, voice low as he watched the other boy through narrowed eyes._

_Hinata frowned, unconsciously biting at his bottom lip. “What night?”_

_“On Halloween,” Kageyama said, gauging his reaction as he spoke, “You sent me a text.”_

_Hinata immediately froze, eyes becoming wide in surprise. “You...got my text that night?”_

_The raven-haired boy nodded, furrowing his brows. “You had said something about Oikawa and a demon. After everything that happened that night, I guess I forgot about it…”_

_As he trailed off, he almost missed the way Hinata’s hands clenched at his sides, knuckles turning white. The other boy had averted his gaze and was staring straight ahead at the seat in front of them, eyes unfocused and unreadable._

_Kageyama frowned. “I never knew what you meant by it. What did it mean?”_

_“I—”_

_Hinata began, but then shook his head rapidly from side to side as though trying to clear his thoughts._

_“It was nothing,” he finally said, with a curious lilt to his voice as he turned back to look at him. “Just a stupid joke.”_

_Kageyama continued to frown at the other boy, watching the way Hinata didn’t quite meet his eyes as he spoke. Something still wasn’t right._

_Unwittingly, he thought back to that October night once more._

_What else was he missing?_

_He remembered finding out about Hinata and Oikawa’s extra practices that day—how inexplicably irritated he had been when he realized just how much time the two were spending together outside of school._

_Why had he been so upset? Was it just the practice itself that bothered him or was it something else?_

_Thinking back now, Kageyama realized that he had been annoyed with Hinata for weeks before then, long before he found out what they had been up to after school. He remembered watching Hinata follow the older boy around like a lost puppy throughout practice, and how irked he had felt when he caught Hinata staring up at Oikawa with a look of awe and reverence—like the older boy hung the moon._

_He remembered noticing the way Hinata’s gaze seemed to track Oikawa around the court, constantly moving so that he would stay in his line of sight—almost as though he were just a satellite and the brunette was his center of gravity._

_And then it finally occurred to him..._

_“You...you really liked him, didn’t you?” Kageyama found himself saying, the realization slowly growing the longer he thought about it._

_Hinata turned to look at him again, tilting his head to the side._

_“...Oikawa. You liked him. Like actually_ **_liked_ ** _him.”_

_Kageyama watched curiously as Hinata’s expression flitted from surprise to remorse, and finally, to a solemn resignation that seemed foreign and out of place on the other boy’s usually cheerful exterior._

_“Yeah. Yeah, I did.”_

_And Kageyama would be lying if he said that Hinata’s admission didn’t cause a confusing jumble of emotions to settle at the pit of his stomach._ _But despite that, he couldn’t help but feel a sense of clarity at uncovering another missing piece to the puzzle that separated this Hinata from the one he knew before._

_Hinata had lost more that night than Kageyama would have ever known._

_“I’m sorry,” the raven-haired boy said softly, not knowing what else could be said in the moment._

_“Me too.”_

-

And that should have been reason enough to appease his wayward curiosity. _It should have been_.

…Yet still, every time he thought of his former teammate that same nagging itch would appear again at the back of his mind, and Kageyama couldn’t fight the feeling that there was still something he was looking over—something that was staring him straight in the face.

Because why did Hinata run? What was he still so afraid of?

The questions lingered in the back of his mind as Kageyama slipped his phone back in his pocket, making a mental reminder to call the other man back before the week ended.

-

_This time, Hinata could actually feel himself ease into wakefulness._

_Eyes open wide as he stared up into the darkness of the room, he tried to turn his head, but he was completely immobile, unable to lift a single digit or even twitch a muscle into movement._

_And what was worse…_

_…_ _What was worse was that there was something_ **_else_** _...an inkling of fear that began to spike uneasily into a crippling terror that threatened to swallow him whole._

_Because he could feel_ **_it._ **

_The distinct pressure of something…_

_…_ _On his chest…_

_He couldn’t breathe._

_Couldn’t think clearly._

_There was something in the room with him. An ominous presence. Right there. Right next to him. He could feel it. Watching him._

**_Waiting._ **

_“...I’ll follow you...no matter how fast you run…”_

_He squeezed his eyes shut as tight as he could and spent the next few hours reciting every prayer he knew, hoping for daylight._

-

Hinata was a nervous wreck at dinner that night.

Once a week, he always took part in a longstanding open invitation to dinner with Heitor at the restaurant Nice worked at—under the only condition that they were responsible for clearing up the leftovers in the kitchen so that they wouldn’t go bad.

Normally, it was one of Hinata’s favorite nights of the week. He was never one to pass up an opportunity for free, delicious food after all. But today, even the rich Brazilian fare tasted like cardboard in his mouth as he chewed methodically, unable to shake off the encounter he had earlier that week.

“Shouyou. Você está bem?” _Are you okay?_

Hinata blinked rapidly, shaking his head as he looked up from his dinner plate to lock eyes with a worried-looking Heitor. 

“Ah! Yes! I’m fine!” 

Hinata forced a smile on his face and sheepishly rubbed the back of his head. “Just distracted, that’s all. Desculpe por te preocupar.” _Sorry for worrying you._

Seated beside Heitor, Nice leaned forward, her dark brown eyes narrowing in concern. “You’ve been staring at your dinner plate for the past 10 minutes without moving, Shouyou. Something is obviously on your mind…”

Caught off-guard at being called out, Hinata regarded her with a wide-eyed, deer-in-headlights expression, and Nice sighed, softening her tone. “You’re never this quiet. Nos diga o que está errado.” _Tell us what’s wrong._

Worrying at his bottom lip, Hinata’s gaze flitted between his two friends as he contemplated what to say. 

Could he tell them the truth? Would they even believe him?

The fear and the confusion that threatened to overtake him was already spilling over the surface and affecting his day-to-day. He couldn’t keep this up, not at this rate anyway.

“Vocês vão pensar que sou louco,” Hinata finally said, his voice betraying his reluctance. _You guys are going to think I’m crazy._

Heitor immediately shook his head to dismiss the idea, flashing the younger man an easygoing smile. “Not any crazier than we already think you are.”

Hinata huffed a laugh at the other man’s attempt to ease his nerves, quirking a small, hesitant smile in turn. “Okay, okay.”

“Então o que está acontecendo?” _So what’s going on?_

The orange-haired man drummed his fingers against his knee nervously under the table, considering his words before speaking. “Do you guys believe in the...supernatural?”

Nice tilted her head to the side. “Like ghost stories?”

“Like _demons_.”

Heitor’s eyes widened in surprise. “Demônios?”

Nice immediately straightened up, her expression contorting to one of distaste as she waved her hands rapidly in front of her. “Nope, no thank you. Eu não preciso desse azar na minha vida!” _I don’t need that bad luck in my life._

Heitor rolled his eyes when his girlfriend began doing the signs of the cross, muttering something about her flare for the dramatic under his breath. “Brazilians can be very superstitious about things, you see. Don’t mind her.”

“Don’t mind?” Nice repeated incredulously, shooting the man beside her a look of pure disbelief. “Are you serious?”

Heitor made a motion with his hands to placate her. “Why don’t we let Hinata explain what is going on before we jump to conclusions?

Nice pursed her lips, glaring softly at him before nodding her head in acknowledgement at the orange-haired man seated across from them. “Okay, Shouyou. Is there a reason why you think you’re having a demon problem?”

For a brief moment, Hinata considered telling them about Oikawa. But he quickly dismissed it when he saw the freaked out expression on Nice’s face. Not only was there just too much to unpack, but there was no way either of them were going to take it well. How could he possibly tell them that his high school crush turned out to be a soul-eating, murderous demon who Hinata had tried to stake and burn alive?

How would they react when he told them that said demon was now somehow back in the flesh, ordering take-out and chatting him up like nothing was wrong?

It sounded ludicrous even in his head.

Letting out a soft groan, Hinata dropped his face in his hands and rubbed at his temples in circular motions. He knew where he could start at least.

“So...lately...I haven’t been able to sleep,” he began, opening his eyes to peer up at them through his bangs. “I keep waking up in the middle of the night, and I'm frozen. I try to move, but I can’t.”

“It’s happened twice now. But every time, it’s like I can...feel something else in the room with me... _watching me_ ,” Hinata continued, shivering slightly as he spoke. “And there’s this...heavy weight on my chest, and it’s like I can’t even breathe!”

“Can you talk at all?” Heitor questioned, rubbing his chin with his hand thoughtfully.

Hinata shook his head in response. “No, I can’t talk. I can’t move. I can’t do anything but lay there! Era como se eu estivesse paralisado!” _Like I am paralyzed!_

“Heitor!” Nice gasped suddenly, slapping Heitor on the arm rapidly in fear. “I know what this is!”

“É a Pisadeira!” 

The other man seemed to blanch, face noticeably paling at the unfamiliar term as Hinata scrunched up his face in confusion. “The what?”

Nice was chewing at her bottom lip. “...Do you know what sleep paralysis is?”

When Hinata frowned at her, the young woman sighed in turn. “It’s exactly what you described. It’s this phenomenon when your body wakes up from sleep completely paralyzed.”

Hinata felt an inkling of relief at that. “So, there’s like a scientific explanation for it? I’m not going crazy?”

“Well…” Heitor still had a wary look on his face that made Hinata’s stomach churn uneasily. 

“What? Just say it!” Hinata insisted.

Heitor exhaled, shoulders dropping as he folded his arms on the table before them and leaned forward, his voice low. “See, in Brazil, sleep paralysis only happens when a demon, the Pisadeira, finds an unwitting victim to stalk at night. It lurks and comes into people’s homes, trampling on the chests of those who sleep, tormenting them as they lay frozen in place, unable to move or do anything.”

If Hinata could have groaned out loud at his bad luck, he would have. Because, _of course_ there was another stupid demon hell-bent on torturing him. _Of course there was._

Hinata was _not_ doing this again.

“Como faço para me livrar dele?” _How do I get rid of it?_

Hinata stood up from his seat, voice rising to an almost hysterical level. “Sal? Água benta? Oração?” _Salt? Holy Water? Prayer?_

“Woah, woah, woah. Acalme-se, Shouyou!” _Calm down_.

How was he supposed to be calm? First, Oikawa was somehow _back from the dead_ and if that wasn't bad enough, there was yet another demon tormenting him in his sleep? How was that even possible?

_…_ _Unless,_ his mind prompted suddenly, _they were one in the same?_

The unbidden thought took root in his mind and Hinata dropped back into his seat, deflated, almost falling off the edge of the chair as he attempted to process this new line of thinking.

It couldn’t be a coincidence that the sleep paralysis just started happening right when he ran into Oikawa, right? They must be connected somehow.

“...Shouyou?”

_It had been five whole years_. Five years of coming to terms with what happened and growing up and learning to stop looking for shadows every time it got dark outside—was he really going to let Oikawa go and upend everything that he worked so hard to build for himself yet again?

Hinata felt his resolve turn to steel in his veins. 

No, he wasn’t going to let Oikawa get the better of him this time around. Not again. This time, he was going to have the upper-hand. He was going to take care of the demon once and for all.

-

Just like all the nights before, Hinata found himself forced to lay awake, frozen in place as he struggled in vain to move, to speak, to do anything but just lay there uselessly.

By the time dawn bled over the horizon and crept through the blinds of his open window, Hinata’s eyes were already scratchy from being open for too long. Somewhere in between night and morning, the pressure disappeared, gone as though it had never been there to begin with.

But there was a phantom ache there, right in the middle of his chest that reminded him of the crippling unease of the unseen weight that rested there through the night.

The second more light filtered into the room, giving him a small sense of comfort at the least, Hinata slipped out of bed and began getting ready for the day.

It was just before six in the morning when Hinata found himself on the beach, settled in the sand with the low tide waves lapping up the shore, gently brushing against his toes before chasing the sand back down into the sea.

The taste of salt in the air helped to calm as he tried to clear his thoughts and focus.

He was losing sleep.

He was going _crazy._

He needed a reset, like Heitor had suggested.

No, what he needed was _volleyball_.

Maybe playing a quick match would help ease the near-constant state of anxiety he found himself continually drowning in as of late. At the very least, it would get his mind off of things for a little while.

“Hey, Shouyou!”

Hinata opened his eyes at the sound of his name, and when he looked over his shoulder, he had to stop himself from nearly toppling over when he saw Lucio walking towards him on the beach with an annoyingly familiar brunette at his side. He gaped as the two men stopped a few feet away from him, making it so that Hinata had to crane his neck upward to see them both. With the blinding morning sun behind them, he had to squint his eyes to refocus—but there was no mistaking the handsome profile of Oikawa standing there beside his coach, smiling politely at him volleyball in hand.

Oh no. 

Oh no. No. _No._

No way.

Was this really happening? He continued to stare at them dumbfounded as Lucio, oblivious to Hinata’s failing mental state, grinned down at him while gesturing with his hand to the man at his side.

“This is Tooru! He’s new to the beach volleyball scene, and he’s looking for a partner to practice with.”

Hinata felt his jaw clench at the name, his frustration only growing when Oikawa—in all semblance of politeness—stepped forward with an outstretched hand and bent down so that he effectively one, blocked the sun from Hinata’s face, and two, forced him to stare at the attractive lines of Oikawa’s face with startling clarity.

“It’s nice to meet you, _Shou-you,_ ” Oikawa said smoothly, brown eyes crinkling at the edges in clear amusement when he saw Hinata’s eye involuntarily twitch at the sound of his voice.

_Shit._

“Nice to meet you, too,” Hinata finally gritted out between clenched teeth, taking the other man’s hand for a mere half-second before dropping it, more for Lucio’s sake than anything else. He looked over his shoulder to stare at his coach, schooling his expression into one _not_ dripping of clear disdain.

“Unfortunately, I’m not really looking for a partner right now.”

Lucio only shook his head. “Nonsense! I know for a fact Heitor has another obligation today, so you have some free time on your hands.” The older man rested his hands at his hip as he raised a brow at Hinata. “And knowing you, you would have just picked up any old partner off the beach. You’re lucky I found one for you!”

“So lucky,” Oikawa echoed, still smiling as he straightened up, but making no moves to back away from his close proximity.

Hinata frowned and slowly picked himself up into standing position, taking care to maintain a respectable distance between him and the other man. Unconsciously, he found his eyes traveling down Oikawa’s form, cataloguing the shorts and t-shirt, so deceptively casual, and almost flinched when his eyes rose back up to meet smug brown ones. 

Meanwhile, Lucio continued to talk as though completely unaware of the tension growing.

“And Tooru is actually Japanese as well! What are the chances of that?”

Oikawa maintained a look of complete innocence as he smiled at Hinata and then back at Lucio. “What are the chances, indeed?”

Hinata shot him a disbelieving look, unable to quite process what was happening. 

“I was thinking you guys could get started now! I saw another duo on one of the courts looking for opponents. What do you say?”

“Well, actually—“

“Sounds great!” Oikawa cut in cheerfully before Hinata could respond.

He was half in a daze when they followed the other man to the court. Lucio was leading them, chatting away animatedly about something that happened that weekend, and it was only when he felt an arm brush against his shoulder that he realized that Oikawa had slowed down his pace to match his so that they were walking side by side. 

“So, beach volleyball, huh? Not what I would have expected from you.”

Hinata bit the inside of his cheek to stop himself from shouting out the obscenities that jumbled in his head at the words.

”...But, I guess you always did manage to surprise me,” Oikawa said, chuckling to himself as Hinata furrowed his brows, fighting an internal battle with himself.

Should he confront him now? With Lucio right there? Was that too risky?

“Ninja Shouyou!”

Hinata’s line of thinking was cut short when he saw two familiar players waving at him from the court.

“Você está pronto para ser derrotado desta vez?” _You ready to get beat this time?_

The teasing challenge in the other man’s tone caused Hinata to momentarily forget about the brunette beside him, and he puffed up his chest in response.

“Eu gostaria de ver você tentar, Gabriel!” _I’d like to see you try!_

“You don’t have your normal partner today, so maybe we have a better chance!” Gino laughed from beside his brother, tossing a volleyball lightly in his hand. 

At that, Hinata casted a sidelong glance with Oikawa, frowning as he considered his options. Was he really going to do this? Was he really going to pretend like everything was a-okay when he was in the company of an actual, honest-to-god, demon?

Oikawa seemed to sense his hesitation, lifting a brow in amusement. “It’s just a game, Chibi-chan.”

“Don’t call me that,” Hinata snapped back instantly, surprising even himself with the bite in his tone.

Oikawa only smirked. “You used to beg me to toss to you. Remember that?”

Hinata felt sick. “That was a long time ago.”

“Come on,” Oikawa said, gesturing with his hand for Hinata to accompany him as he began walking towards the two other men on the sandy court. “I want to see how much you’ve improved since then.”

Still scowling at the brunette’s back, Hinata trudged behind him uncertainly. “Aren’t you out of practice?” _You know, since you’ve technically been dead all of this time?_ He finished bitterly in his head.

There was a flash of a familiar, playful smile as Oikawa turned to look back at him. “I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised.” 

-

_“Nice kill!”_

_“Over here!”_

_“Aw, você quase conseguiu!”_

_“Great receive!”_

-

When Hinata slid in the sand, digging his feet to ground himself as he managed to receive a particularly nasty serve, he couldn’t help but feel a reluctant grin begin to tug at the corner of his mouth when he saw Oikawa dive down beside him, showering the two in a healthy spray of sand. At the sight of the ever-so put together, intimidating individual half buried in the sand beside him, Hinata had to bite down a chuckle that threatened to escape.

He hated to admit it, and would probably never voice it out loud for as long as he lived, but despite everything _—_ the bitterness and the anger and the fear that churned within him _—_ Hinata was actually having _fun_. 

More fun playing volleyball than he had had in a long while.

...And it was because of _Oikawa._

Hinata shook his head, forcing a frown on his face when the brunette shot him an assessing glance. The two traded a quick look, communicating without words, before Oikawa was twisting his body to reach out and receive the ball that was just spiked to their side of the court, angling his arm so that the ball would bounce off of him and towards Hinata’s waiting hands. 

Eyeing the ball intently, Hinata set it just as Oikawa jumped up beside him to slam it home on the other side of the court.

There was a rush of satisfaction at the perfectly executed combo, followed immediately by the inevitable rise of guilt.

Because Hinata _hated_ this.

He hated feeling this way.

He hated the way his eyes still sparkled in delight when he watched Oikawa pull off something that was especially cool _—_ how his eyes were automatically drawn to the curve of other man’s jaw when he looked off to the side, trying to force himself to look away from the strong, lean lines of his back as Oikawa served.

...He hated how seamlessly they could still work together despite all this time.

“You really learned how to be independent, huh?” Hinata heard Oikawa murmur from behind him, and the familiar callback somehow made everything feel both simultaneously better and worse at the same time.

It was an understatement to say that he was immensely grateful when Gino and Gabriel came up beside them after the match, grinning in their normal carefree manner.

“Você nos deve bebidas, Shouyou!” _You owe us drinks!_

Hinata waved a hand at them dismissively, pouting when Gabriel patted him firmly on the back and Gino ruffled his hair. “Eu vou quebrar alimentando seus hábitos de beber!” _I’m going to go broke feeding your drinking habits._

“Você tem sorte de ser tão cedo! Faremos uma checagem por enquanto,” Gabriel teased. _You're lucky it's so early in the morning! We'll take a raincheck for now._

“Oh, by the way, Shouyou! We are having a huge get-together at our place for Halloween next weekend. Você em?” _You in?_

Hinata felt the smile on his face freeze uncomfortably, nearly dropping the volleyball he was holding in his hands. “...Halloween?”

Gino cocked his head to the side. “Sim, lembre-se daquela grande festa que fazemos todos os anos.” _Yeah, remember that huge party we hold every year?_

Gabriel shook his head at his brother and casted a curious look back at Hinata. “I’m pretty sure Shouyou didn’t come last year. Algo supercrível sobre estar muito ocupado, se bem me lembro?” _Something super believable about being really busy, if I remember correctly?_

“Oh, really? I don’t remember!” Hinata adverted his gaze, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly with an awkward laugh. He tried to ignore the way he could feel Oikawa’s eyes on him as he watched their exchange quietly from beside him. If he was being honest, every Halloween he found himself holed up in his bedroom, with every single light turned on and the television playing something cheery and loud until morning came. But he wasn’t about to share that out loud to anyone.

As if just remembering the other player, Gino looked over at Oikawa and offered him a friendly smile. “You’re also welcome to join us, too, newbie!” 

Hinata watched as Oikawa stretched a smile on his face that looked far too amicable to be genuine. “Sounds great. I do love celebrating Halloween.”

But when the brunette turned around to look back at Hinata, his eyes beginning to gleam in that unnerving way of his, he felt his stomach drop as his eyes widened in slow realization. 

"By the way, I am _starving_ , Shouyou. We should go get something to eat after this.”

Halloween.

Hunger.

Feeding.

_"It's either I feed one day out of the year or the hunger keeps me wanting and wanting..."_

“Well, we’ll see you guys later!”

Hinata barely acknowledged the two men leaving, still staring wide-eyed at Oikawa. Everything was slowly starting to add up. With Halloween just around the corner, it made sense that the demon would become more active. Now, the only real question was _why now_? What had Oikawa been doing for the past five years?

“What are you planning?” Hinata asked, eyes narrowed and suspicious as they remained trained on the other man.

Oikawa had the nerve to keep the innocent expression on his face, merely tilting his head to the side as he considered him. “What makes you think I’m planning anything?”

Hinata could feel his patience growing thin as he glowered. “Don’t play with me. _Halloween?_ Isn’t this your whole thing? Getting unsuspecting victims to fall into your trap, just so you can kill them in cold-blood to suit your murderous, half-demon needs?”

The other man pouted, crossing his arms. “So distrusting, Shou-chan. I’m hurt. Have I really done anything just yet to make you so suspicious of me?”

“Oh, and I’m supposed to just believe that me running into you was just some big whole coincidence?” Hinata questioned incredulously as his voice rose an octave. “You don't fool me for a second.”

"Maybe you’re here to finish what you started...?" Despite the fear gripping his chest, Hinata stood his ground firmly and raised his chin. “To kill me once and for all?”

“Kill you?” Oikawa’s voice lowered as he stalked forward slightly. Hinata forced himself to stay still, even when the taller man loomed over him, a mere couple of feet away. “After I spent all of this time looking for you?”

_Looking for me?_

”What else could you possibly want with me?” Hinata countered, glaring furiously up at him through his bangs, ignore the way his mind was racing at the implications of Oikawa’s words. “It’s already worse enough that you are stalking me around during the day, but now I can’t even sleep without you insisting on tormenting me?” 

Oikawa’s smile dropped at that, and his eyes glittered dangerously as he peered down at him. “...What did you say?”

“Don’t act like you don’t know what I’m talking about!” Hinata shot back angrily.

“Are you having trouble sleeping, Shouyou?” Oikawa questioned carefully, causing Hinata to scrunch up his face in confusion. There was something in the other man’s face that made him become uneasy, but he had no desire to speculate and play these mind games with him.

"I don't know what you want or why you're back," Hinata began slowly, "But I want absolutely _nothing_ to do with you. Got it?"

Oikawa’s eyes were narrowed as he gave him a considering look, and Hinata eyed him warily in turn.

“Just...stay away from me, okay?” He said warningly, before turning around and walking away. Hinata tried to ignore the way the hair rose at the back of his neck when he felt the demon’s eyes watching his back as he left.

-

For the rest of the week, Hinata was surprised to keep most of his sanity in tact. 

Shockingly enough, Oikawa seemed to actually heed his warning and kept his distance. The only time he knowingly made an appearance was to practice with him on the court when Heitor was otherwise occupied, and even then, the other man was a perfect gentleman—not once pushing his boundaries or making questionable, backhanded remarks like he had before. Otherwise, the only other times Hinata saw the demon was mostly by accident. He swore that he saw the brunette weaving through the crowded streets of the marketplace when he was biking through to make a delivery, and there were many times when he would catch a glimpse of Oikawa amongst the spectators on the beach when he was playing a match.

But when Hinata would whip his head back to look around, searching through the crowd for a sign of his familiar figure and seeing nothing, he began to wonder if maybe his mind was just starting to play tricks on him. 

Still, despite the lack of confrontation between himself and Oikawa, Hinata couldn’t stop his nervous anticipation from growing more and more unbearable as the days crept closer and closer to All Hallow's Eve.

And it didn’t help that the nights were not getting any easier for him. If anything, he felt as though he was losing even more sleep, sometimes choosing not to try at all if it meant avoiding having to face the terrible paralysis that soon followed. By the time Friday rolled around, Hinata was dead on his feet, nearly falling asleep on his bike ride home.

When he finally made it to back to his apartment after a particularly long day, the orange-haired man wasted no time yawning intermittently and rubbing at his eyes. He wondered if he would have enough energy for a shower before bed or if he could maybe get away with napping until it got dark outside, leaving the rest of his responsibilities for the morning time.

He was about to trudge into his bedroom and do just that, when he heard a sharp knock on the door. Hinata narrowed his eyes in confusion as he looked back over his shoulder at the sound. Was it Pedro already? His roommate had texted him earlier that he would be late coming back tonight and was planning to hole up in the library in preparation for his upcoming exams. Not to mention his roommate had his own key, so why would he be knocking?

Hinata slowly made his way to the door, unlocking the deadbolt and pulling it open before freezing in place at the sight that met him.

Oikawa was leaning lazily against the doorframe, clad in a simple dark button-down and jeans, a slow smile stretching on his face when he saw Hinata's surprised expression. "Hi, Chibi-chan!"

"I thought I told you _—_ " Hinata stopped himself with a shake of his head, before continuing, his voice angry and inquisitive, “What do you think you're doing here?”

“I thought we could have dinner," Oikawa responded, completely at ease as he pushed his way past Hinata. As he passed through the threshold of the apartment, he paused for a moment, as if waiting for something to happen, before shrugging his shoulders and continuing forward to make his way into the kitchen. Once there, he unceremoniously dropped the bags of takeout food on the island, and proceeded to look about the apartment curiously.

Hinata was still standing in his own doorway, body half-twisted around as he watched Oikawa wander about the space, paying him no mind. When the brunette bent down to swipe his finger along the window sills with a furrowed look in his brows, Hinata finally spoke up.

“ _What are you doing?_ ”

When Oikawa turned back around to look at him, his lips were pursed in an unimpressed manner as he rested his hands at his hips. “I have to say I'm a little bit disappointed."

Hinata gave him another disbelieving look. "With what? My decor?"

Oikawa rolled his eyes with an amused huff. "I mean I just thought you'd at least have some basic protections. Where is your salt? Runes? Crucifix? Nothing?”

“Huh?” Hinata asked unintelligibly after him.

“Haven’t you learned _anything_ from last time?” Oikawa asked, emphasizing the word as he leaned forward to rest his elbows on the upholstered seat in front of him.

Hinata frowned. “What are you talking about?”

Oikawa sighed in a very put-upon manner, waving a hand in the air. “You said you were having a sleep problem. What did you mean by that?”

“Like you don’t know," Hinata said, narrowing his eyes to show his clear distrust.

But Oikawa only lifted a brow. “Humor me.”

For a moment, they just stared each other down. Hinata was torn between the desire to forcibly usher the demon out of his home immediately, while another part of him couldn't deny his own curiosity at Oikawa's words. Huffing in annoyance, Hinata gave in to the latter, rubbing the side of his arm distractedly as he considered what to say. “Every night, I keep waking up paralyzed. My friends told me that it's something called sleep paralysis, and that it shouldn't be such a recurring issue. But for the past couple of weeks, I haven't been able to sleep at all because of it."

Oikawa hummed thoughtfully, stroking his chin as Hinata spoke. “Thought as much. Sounds to me like you’re having a demon problem.”

Hinata’s expression immediately turned flat as he raised a brow at the other man. “I mean the fact that you’re standing here before me is clear indication of that, isn’t it?”

“I know this may surprise you, but I actually am _not_ the reason for your sleeping issues, Shou-chan," Oikawa explained, quirking his lips upwards. “But I can help you...if you let me.”

Hinata let out a bitter laugh, scoffing at the mere suggestion. “And I’m supposed to believe you? Trust you even?”

“Do you want my help or not?”

“I don’t want anything to do with you," Hinata spat out, glaring at the other man stubbornly.

Oikawa narrowed his eyes at him for moment, expression turning thoughtful. Hinata wondered for a moment if he was going to continue putting up a fight, but instead, the brunette merely sighed, pushing himself up from the seat he was leaning on to walk back around towards the kitchen. “Why don’t we have some food first, and then we can revisit this topic? I assume you haven't eaten yet.”

Hinata wanted to ask him just how exactly he knew that, but realized that he didn't actually want to know the answer. “Fine. Dinner and then you’re out of here.”

As he followed Oikawa back into the kitchen, Hinata suddenly felt his tiredness return tenfold, unable to hold back the yawn that escaped as he stretched his arms over his head. When Oikawa glanced back at him, mid-yawn, the older man clicked his tongue at him. “Why don’t you rest on the couch while I get the food ready?”

Hinata glared sleepily back at him, his expression clearly saying _‘I don’t trust you for a second',_ making Oikawa chuckle and wave his hand at him. “I promise I won’t try anything. Don’t you think if I wanted to kill you, I would have done it already?”

‘’S not Halloween yet,” Hinata mumbled, rubbing his eyes. He really _was_ tired. And despite his protests, he found himself walking towards the coach and folding himself into it, closing his eyes.

If he was thinking clearly, he would have thought to question how strange it was that he suddenly felt comfortable enough to lower his guard in front of Oikawa. He would have maybe thought about how odd it was that sleep was overtaking him over so quickly, when he had been having so much trouble sleeping before. 

And if he was his normal self, Hinata most definitely would not have missed the way those knowing brown eyes flashed amber at him from across the room.

But oblivious to it all, he was asleep minutes later, completely dead to the world.

-

What seemed like hours later, Hinata woke in a worrying shudder, his heart already beating loudly in his chest as he blinked up at his living room ceiling, registering instantly how dark the room was.

How long had he been asleep? Where was Oikawa?

He tried to lift himself up, and his apprehension only grew when he realized that he was completely immobile. But unlike the times before, something was noticeably different. The dark, ominous presence that he felt in the corner of the room pressed even closer now, its presence stealing the very oxygen right out of his lungs.

A smell like burnt oil invaded his senses, followed by the sharp tang of sulfur making him feel nauseated and dizzy. He wanted to cry, to shout, but he could only lay there motionless.

What was happening?

Suddenly, the pressure on his chest shifted, and he felt his insides turn to ice as a dark shadow slowly entered his field of vision. His eyes widened in horror as he registered the shape of a head, a gaunt face, two dark holes that were a mere mockery of eyes glaring into him. He opened his mouth to scream, but the sound was lodged in his throat.

This was _it_.

_A_ _Pisadeira_.

But then just as the looming shadowy figure bent over him, its rancid breath puffing against his cheek as he squeezed his eyes shut tight, it was flung off by something powerful, and the weight on his chest immediately lifted as he heard the sound of a crash against the wall next to him, following by strange hissing sounds.

Once the weight was gone, Hinata opened his eyes and realized that feeling was beginning to return to his body, and using all of his might, he craned his neck to the side to where the sounds were coming from.

The shadowy figure was a clump on the floor. It seemed to draw the darkness of the room into itself, cloaking the shadows like layers of a cape into its form. 

And crouched over it, with a menacing hand to its throat was none other than Oikawa.

Hinata felt his mouth dry at the sight. “O-Oikawa-senpai?” 

It was the first time he had actually called the demon by his name, and when the brunette looked back over his shoulder at him, the golden amber in his gaze was unmistakable. 

With the demon’s body now angled toward him, Hinata could see how he was holding down the shuddering shadow with one hand, pressing the creature to the floor of the room. It sputtered and hissed in his grip **—** almost as if it was trying to say something. But the sound that came out of it was more or less just screeching—like sharp fingernails against an old chalkboard. Hinata winced at the sound, but it only grew louder and more uncontained by the second.

When Oikawa murmured something low and gravely under his breath, the screeching began to reach an almost unbearable fever pitch, and Hinata was beyond thankful that the movement in his arms came back just in time for him to lift them up to his ears to block off the piercing sound.

But just as soon as it started, it ended. The shadow dispersed into dark smoky tendrils beneath Oikawa's hand, and when the demon rose up from his crouching position, the darkness that once blanketed the room suddenly disappeared, brightening the space as the light was let back in. Hinata found himself weakly coughing as he attempted to breath normally again, taking in large mouthfuls of air as he gasped.

Through squinted eyes, Hinata watched as Oikawa approached him where he still laid on the couch. As the demon hovered beside him for a moment, Hinata propped himself up by the elbows in an attempt to sit up, wincing instinctively when a warm hand brushed against the loose strands of his hair, pushing them back behind his ear. The surprising act of gentleness shocked Hinata back into awareness as his hazel eyes locked onto orbs of molten gold.

Oikawa bent his knees and crouched down next to him, and for a long moment they were both silent as they regarded each other.

“I just don’t get you,” Hinata found himself whispering, a frown tugging his lips downward. “What do you want?”

Oikawa hummed to himself, letting the rough pads of his fingertips trace down the side of Hinata’s cheek to brush against his chin.

“You know, I think I could be good...for you."

Hinata blinked up at him, trying to ignore the way the other man's hand on his face made his heart race uncomfortably in his chest. “You tried to kill me,” he reminded him.

Oikawa flashed him a lazy smirk. “You _actually_ killed me.”

“I haven’t forgiven you," Hinata stated with a shake of his head, "I don’t know if I ever will.”

“I’m not asking you to," Oikawa insisted, his voice amused as he continued to stroke the side of Hinata’s face.

“Then what _are_ you asking?” 

“What makes you think I’m asking for anything?” Oikawa challenged.

“Because you never do anything unless you’re getting something in return,” Hinata found himself saying, repeating Kageyama’s words from all those years ago. He tried to pretend that he wasn't afraid, that he wasn't completely and absolutely terrified when he felt Oikawa trace his bottom lip with his thumb.

But he knew how much of a lie that was when Oikawa bent down and pressed his hot, demanding lips against his own.

Hinata immediately gasped into the kiss, his hands shooting upwards and curling against the strong jawline he had spent far too much time admiring. Oikawa's hands dropped to his shoulders, applying just enough pressure to push him backwards, and Hinata felt like his stomach was in free-fall— _no wait_ —he was literally falling, head hitting the back of the couch cushion as the other man followed him down, lips still connected as Oikawa’s tongue licked along the seams of his lips.

He felt like he was burning, every point of contact becoming a trail of fire, from the hands that moved upwards from his shoulders to rest at the base of his neck to the fiery lips that continued to move insistently against his own.

Almost as quickly as it started, Oikawa broke the kiss with a loud smacking sound, and Hinata looked up at him completely dazed and out of breath as the brunette remained close, mere inches away from his own face, a small smirk playing along his mouth.

“I suppose there might be something I want in turn.”

Hinata cleared his throat uncomfortably, feeling his face flush hot. When he blinked, he was surprised to find his eyes becoming heavy once more, an overwhelming feeling of drowsiness taking over yet again. 

Oikawa only smiled as he watched Hinata blink sleepily back at him. “Hey, Shou-chan, what fills up an entire room, but takes up no space?”

Hinata wanted to let out an incredulous laugh at hearing yet another riddle, but instead he found his vision darkening once more as sleep took over. The last thing he saw before he closed his eyes was Oikawa staring down at him fondly as the hand on his face lingered.

-

For the first time in weeks, Hinata slept peacefully and did not dream. 

-

When Hinata fell back asleep, Oikawa spent a moment just watching the smaller man, his gaze drawn to the way his long lashes rested demurely against his cheeks. He really _had_ grown up. Gone was the lanky, little first year who used to follow him around and hang onto his every word, and in his place was a vibrant, hotheaded male who seemed to challenge him every chance he got. 

Not to mention what _else_ had changed.

Oikawa placed one arm under Hinata’s legs and the other around his back to lift him upwards to his chest, lifting the smaller man from the couch and carrying him to his bedroom. It was easy to tell which room belonged to him. Hinata’s room was modest enough, with sparse decor and a tasteful selection of books lining the shelves. Oikawa eyed them curiously as he placed Hinata into the bed, pulling the covers down and around his form.

He almost laughed to himself when he saw how Hinata had immediately grabbed hold of a pillow, curling around it into fetal position. Oikawa’s eyes unwittingly traced the tanned skinned, following the lean line of muscle along Hinata’s arms as they disappeared beneath the pillow he clutched.

Oikawa could have probably stayed there for hours just watching him, but he reminded himself that he had things to do and didn’t have time to spare. Casting one last glance at the man sleeping peacefully before him, he forced himself to get up and leave the room, shutting the door behind him.

He was walking down the alleyway outside of the apartment when a figure suddenly materialized appeared out of the shadows next to him. He tilted his head to the side in acknowledgement, pausing in his steps.

“A Pisadeira. A pleasure,” Oikawa murmured softly as the shadow shifted and twisted, forming into the familiar shape of a gaunt, ghastly figure beside him. 

“I liked that human," it crooned, voice sounding raw and croaking as it spoke. "His dreams were so delicious.”

Oikawa's expression darkened at that, and he considered the creature beside him with narrowed eyes. “You won’t be bothering him anymore.”

The shadow curled into itself. “But of course, master.”

“Good," Oikawa responded in low voice. "You proved to be quite useful, though.”

The shadow tittered about, almost as though it was pleased by his statement. "Humans can be so vacuous at times, but there are moments when I find myself greatly entertained by one or two. Especially the stubborn ones."

"I find myself thinking that as well,” Oikawa agreed, thinking of a flash of willful hazel eyes.

“Do you find yourself missing it at all?" The Pisedeira asked, its tone curious. "Your human half?”

Oikawa chuckled darkly in response. "It's amazing that humans are capable of functioning at all with every inane, vapid thought conflicting with the silly morals they hold so dear. It's been liberating without it."

The shadow makes another gravely noise, almost resembling a laugh. "I imagine so."

There was a short pause as the shadow slinked along the brick walls beside him before reforming back to its humanoid-like form. "And what do you plan to do with that human? A lot of effort for just a simple meal.”

“I haven’t quite decided yet.” Oikawa's eyes were a molten gold as he looked up from where he stood, eyeing Hinata's bedroom window from the darkness of the alleyway. “But as long as he stays interesting, I think I’m going to keep him.”

There was a sudden loud _clank_ on the other side of the narrow alley, and both figures turned to look as a lone female stumbled around the corner, giggling to herself, clearly inebriated. 

The Pisedeira hissed in delight at the sight, tittering softly again as it melted into the shadows of the night, leaving Oikawa to watch almost disinterestedly as the girl lifted a hand to steady herself as she walked down the darkened alleyway.

Well, he _did_ miss dinner.

Oikawa stalked forward, movements measured and slow as he approached the unsuspecting female, the moon casted shadows in his wake as his eyes glinted gold as he regarded his prey.

The sharp, piercing scream that followed was lost in the evening air.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (1) This story was actually really hard to write because 1) I've never even attempted to write horror before, and 2) I didn't really know where I was going with the plot LOL. I just wanted to write OiHina with some spooky, supernatural elements, and this was what was churned out >.< Despite that, I had a lot of fun writing and exploring this new genre and style for myself. Plus, I definitely enjoyed writing evil/morally ambiguous demon!Oikawa and exploring a Seijoh!Hinata AU.
> 
> (2) If you like OiHina, I will be posting a few more fics for #oihinaweek coming up! (But they will have a very different vibe to them lol) So stay tuned!
> 
> (3) Thank you guys so much for reading!! Follow me on Twitter for more fic updates! @earlgrey_mt
> 
> [official artwork for this fic](https://twitter.com/earlgrey_mt/status/1324082306018119680?s=20)


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